NASA’s Juno mission recently achieved its closest approach to Io, Jupiter’s innermost Galilean moon, passing within 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) of the moon’s surface on February 3rd.

These encounters mark the closest Io passes that Juno will execute, although the record for closest approach still belongs to the Galileo mission, which came within 112 miles (181 kilometers) of Io in 2001.

The mission has provided new breathtaking perspectives of Io’s tumultuous surface, with several images accessible on the JunoCam Gallery.

This recent close pass occurred just before perijove 58, denoting the 58th orbit around the giant planet for the probe, Sky and Telescope reported.

Approximately a month has passed since Juno’s last close encounter with the moon on December 30, 2023.

NASA has adjusted Juno’s extended mission plan to incorporate seven more flybys of Io, bringing the total to 18.

However, these subsequent passes will be progressively more distant from the moon.

Written by B.C. Begley