Download Some Moons of Gas Giants

s8pe-41304-ca
10/28/05
12:42 PM
RESOURCE CENTER
CLASSZONE.COM
Learn more about the
different moons of giant
planets.
MAZER
Page 436
Moons of Gas Giants
Each giant planet has a system of moons. Six of the moons are larger
than Pluto. Their features are formed by the same processes that shape
the terrestrial planets. Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, has a dense atmosphere of nitrogen, as Earth does, although a haze hides Titan’s surface.
Neptune’s largest moon, Triton, has a thin atmosphere and ice volcanoes.
Jupiter has four large moons—Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto.
Io (EYE-oh) is dotted with volcanoes, which continue to erupt, so Io
has few impact craters. Europa (yu-ROH-puh) has long ridges where
the crust has been pushed and pulled by the material beneath it. The
outer two moons have craters over most of their surfaces.
The other moons of the gas giants are all smaller than Pluto, with
diameters ranging from about 1600 kilometers (1000 mi) down to just
a few kilometers. The smallest moons have irregular shapes, and some
may be bodies that were captured into orbit.
check your reading
What processes are at work on the largest moons?
Some Moons of Gas Giants
Moons in the outer solar system are shaped by the same processes that
produce features on the terrestrial planets.
Saturn’s moon Titan has a
dense atmosphere of cold
nitrogen gas. A thick haze
hides this moon’s surface.
Jupiter’s moon Europa has
a crust of frozen water
shaped by tectonics. Warm
material below has broken
the crust into many pieces.
ridges
haze
Neptune’s moon Triton has
dark streaks that show
where ice volcanoes have
erupted. Winds in the thin
atmosphere blow material
to one side of an eruption.
ice volcano
streak
Reading visuals question
Which images show volcanoes?
436 Unit 4: Space Science
Jupiter’s moon Io has a
surface constantly being
changed by volcanoes.
New material covers the
surface and then changes
color over time.
volcano
(color added)
PDF