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Launched in 2011, the Juno spacecraft is performing far beyond its original mission objectives. It entered Jupiter’s orbit in July 2016 and was expected to perform 36 science orbits around Jupiter and end the mission in early 2018. Instead, it has performed 50 longer-period orbits and will continue its extended mission at least until Sep. 2025.

The graphic below shows the original Juno mission orbits.

https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/press_kits/juno/overview/
#NASA #Juno #Jupiter
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Here are a subset of the dates for the next set of Jupiter flybys by Juno.
Perijoves 53, 55, 57 and 58 will feature close flybys of the moon Io; Juno will be just 1,500 km from Io's surface during PJ57 and PJ58!
Juno orbital period = 38 earth days.
Io orbital period = 42.5 hours (1.77 days).
Juno gets close to Io on every alternate orbit.
Juno orbital period after PJ57 will be 33 days, allowing it to visit Io on PJ58.
Source: https://www.lpi.usra.edu/opag/meetings/jun2022/slides/Bolton.pdf
#NASA #Juno #Jupiter #Io
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Here is a surreal video from NASA of Juno's flyby of Io and Jupiter on May 16 during PJ51, when it came within 35,000 km of Io's surface.

We can only wait with bated breath for a similar video on New Year's Eve, when Juno will be just 1,500 km above Io.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJUJmI8YI_E
#NASA #Juno #Jupiter #Io
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Io is a world tormented by active lava-spewing volcanoes, as it is stretched and squeezed by the gravitational forces of Jupiter, and the moons Europa and Ganymede.

This pic taken by JunoCam from 35,600 km on May 16 during PJ51 indicates changes at the Volund region, where the lava flow field has expanded to the west and another volcano just north of Volund has fresh lava flows surrounding it.

https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-juno-is-getting-ever-closer-to-jupiters-moon-io
#NASA #Juno #Jupiter #Io
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During the Juno flyby of Io, all instruments will be active, including JunoCam, the visible light camera and JIRAM, the Jovian InfraRed Auroral Mapper.

JIRAM's ability to image and take spectra in the 2-5 μm wavelength range will prove to be very valuable in mapping Io's fiery landscape.

The IR image of Io below is based on JIRAM data taken on July 5, 2022 from 80,000 km away. The bright spots highlight active volcanoes that dot the moon.

https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/images/pia25698-jupiters-moon-io-seen-in-infrared-light
#NASA #Juno #Jupiter #Io
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The video below exemplifies the capabilities of the Juno JIRAM instrument.

JIRAM, developed by the Italians, contains an imager at 3.45 μm and 4.78 μm wavelengths and a spectrometer that covers infrared 2-5 μm range.

The video is based on data from JIRAM PJ4, which is used to map the temperature of Jupiter’s atmosphere over its north pole and provides insight into how the powerful cyclones at Jupiter's poles work.

https://youtu.be/xeguW9H6dIM
https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/nasa-s-juno-mission-provides-infrared-tour-of-jupiter-s-north-pole
#NASA #Juno #Jupiter #Io
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The NASA Juno spacecraft is swinging around Jupiter, having made its closest encounter an hour ago during Perijove 53, and is headed back out into its 38 day orbit.

We can follow its progress at https://eyes.nasa.gov/apps/solar-system/#/sc_juno
#NASA #Juno #Jupiter #Io
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Images from the 53rd flyby of Jupiter by the Juno spacecraft have already been posted at the NASA Juno site.
Here is one of the pics of the ever changing face of Jupiter, with some amateur level processing by me.
Look for high quality processed images at the website and from experts here like @kevinmgill @andrealuck @spacegeck

Image below taken on 2023-07-31 08:11:53 UTC from an alt of 73,714.6 km.
https://www.missionjuno.swri.edu/junocam/processing
#NASA #Juno #Jupiter #Io
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