This image presents Jupiter's moon Ganymede as seen by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in 1996. Located 1/2- billion miles (over 600 million kilometers) away, Hubble can follow changes on the moon and reveal other characteristics at ultraviolet and near-infrared wavelengths.
Astronomers have now used new and archival datasets from Hubble to reveal evidence of water vapor in the atmosphere of Jupiter's moon Ganymede for the first time, which is present due to the thermal escape of water vapor from the moon's icy surface.
Credits
Science
NASA, ESA, John Spencer (SwRI Boulder)
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | Ganymede |
| Object Description | Satellite of Jupiter |
| Distance | Over 600 million kilometers away from Earth. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | The HST observations include those from program (J. Spencer) |
| Instrument | WFPC2 |
| Exposure Dates | 14 July 1996 |
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | A name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object. |
| Object Description | The type of astronomical object. |
| R.A. Position | Right ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Dec. Position | Declination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Constellation | One of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears. |
| Distance | The physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs. |
| Dimensions | The physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description |
|
| Instrument | The science instrument used to produce the data. |
| Exposure Dates | The date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time. |
| Filters | The camera filters that were used in the science observations. |
| About The Image | |
| Image Credit | The primary individuals and institutions responsible for the content. |
| Publication Date | The date and time the release content became public. |
| Color Info | A brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented. |
| Orientation | The rotation of the image on the sky with respect to the north pole of the celestial sphere. |
