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This page describes an image The Callisto satellite

Photograph of Callisto showing its dark surface heavily cratered with white pock marks.

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Légende d'image : Callisto is the outermost of the four large Galilean moons of Jupiter and the third largest in the whole solar system, falling behind only Ganymede and Saturn's moon Titan. On average, it orbits Jupiter at a distance of around 1.9 million kilometers, roughly six times the distance between Earth and the Moon.

With a diameter of nearly 5,000 kilometers, it is almost as large as Mercury, the smallest planet in our solar system, but has only a third of its mass as it is composed of approximately equal amounts of rock and ice.

Callisto orbits Jupiter in a tidally locked rotation, always showing the same side to Jupiter. In contrast to the other three Galilean satellites – Io, Europa, and Ganymede – it is not in orbital resonance due to its farther outward location and is thus not appreciably tidally heated. It does not show any signs of plate tectonics or volcanic activity. It is thought to have evolved predominantly under the influence of impacts, as its surface is the oldest and most heavily cratered object in the solar system. In fact, it is so covered in craters that any new impact will likely erase a former one. Its lack of geological processes means that surface features like craters remain unchanged for billions of years.

Callisto's internal structure is still subject to discussion; it may consist of a deep salty ocean. It is thought to be composed mainly of a mix of ice and rock, which are present in various states throughout the inner layers of the moon. Callisto hosts a very thin atmosphere composed mainly of carbon dioxide and some traces of oxygen. The moon has been studied by numerous space probes, such as the Pioneer and Voyager missions and the Galileo orbiter, and will be subject to further explorations by NASA, ESA, and China’s National Space Administration (CNSA).
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Crédits pour l'image : NASA/JPL/DLR Lien du crédit

Termes du glossaire en rapport : Lunes , Satellites galiléens

Licence de l'image : Domaine Public Domaine Public Icônes

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Légende d'image : Callisto is the outermost of the four large Galilean moons of Jupiter and the third largest in the whole solar system, falling behind only Ganymede and Saturn's moon Titan. On average, it orbits Jupiter at a distance of around 1.9 million kilometers, roughly six times the distance between Earth and the Moon.

With a diameter of nearly 5,000 kilometers, it is almost as large as Mercury, the smallest planet in our solar system, but has only a third of its mass as it is composed of approximately equal amounts of rock and ice.

Callisto orbits Jupiter in a tidally locked rotation, always showing the same side to Jupiter. In contrast to the other three Galilean satellites – Io, Europa, and Ganymede – it is not in orbital resonance due to its farther outward location and is thus not appreciably tidally heated. It does not show any signs of plate tectonics or volcanic activity. It is thought to have evolved predominantly under the influence of impacts, as its surface is the oldest and most heavily cratered object in the solar system. In fact, it is so covered in craters that any new impact will likely erase a former one. Its lack of geological processes means that surface features like craters remain unchanged for billions of years.

Callisto's internal structure is still subject to discussion; it may consist of a deep salty ocean. It is thought to be composed mainly of a mix of ice and rock, which are present in various states throughout the inner layers of the moon. Callisto hosts a very thin atmosphere composed mainly of carbon dioxide and some traces of oxygen. The moon has been studied by numerous space probes, such as the Pioneer and Voyager missions and the Galileo orbiter, and will be subject to further explorations by NASA, ESA, and China’s National Space Administration (CNSA).
Crédits pour l'image : NASA/JPL/DLR
Termes du glossaire en rapport : Galilean Satellites , Moons
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