If you were to try to imagine one of the largest objects in our solar system you probably wouldn’t think of Jupiter’s moon Io, or more specifically, Io’s plasma torus; a diffuse donut-shaped cloud of electrically charged gas encircling Jupiter. When viewed from Earth, the torus occupies multiple degrees of sky. Compared to our Sun, which only occupies about half of a degree, it’s massive! However, before you go looking for the torus it should be noted that it can only be seen with specialized telescope filters.
Io’s torus is a fascinating astronomical structure, but why does Io have its torus and what can it tell us about Io’s atmosphere and the Jupiter system? Find out in Dr. Carl Schmidt’s First Friday lecture back in March of 2022 linked below!
Boise State Physics First Friday Astronomy – Dr. Carl Schmidt – March 2022
