Jupiter's volcanic moon Io is emitting strange radio waves and NASA's Juno probe is listening - Space.com

The Juno spacecraft has gotten a private radio show from Jupiter's closest moon, the highly volcanic Io.

NASA's Juno spacecraft is "listening" in on radio emissions from Jupiter's volcanic moon Io, allowing researchers to discover what triggers the strange radio waves. .

Electrons caught in the magnetic field are accelerated toward Jupiter's poles and, along the way, generate a phenomenon scientists call decameter radio waves (also known as decametric radio emissions, or DAM). .

When the spacecraft is in the right spot to listen, Juno's Waves instrument can pick up these radio waves, Yasmina Martos of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center said in the statement!

Researchers have used data from Juno to pinpoint where in Jupiter's massive magnetic field the radio emissions come from.

According to the research team, the radio waves come from space that can be described as a hollow cone, where the conditions are just right: the right magnetic field strength and the right density of electrons.

Such electrons can come from other sources, too, such as from the planet's magnetic field or from a solar wind, according to the research team. .