Highest-Resolution Picture of Io Target Name:   Io Spacecraft:   Galileo Instrument:   Solid-State Imaging Produced by:   NASA/University of Arizona Copyright:  NASA Copyright Free Policy Cross Reference:   PIA02556 Date Taken:   22 February 2000 Date Released:  2000-05-31

• Io, Jupiter's Moon

This image, acquired by NASA's Galileo spacecraft on February 22, 2000, is the highest resolution image ever taken of Io. The resolution is 5.2 meters (18 feet) per picture element.

Galileo viewed the surface obliquely, tilted 72 degrees from straight overhead. Illumination is from the lower right, but the topographic shading is difficult to see because of the strong contrasts in brightness of the surface materials. The bright areas are generally higher in elevation than adjacent dark areas. The surface appears to have been eroded by an unknown process, in places exposing layers of bright and dark material. Evaporation of solid ice may also play a role in separating the bright and dark materials. North is toward the upper right.