A look at NASA's new images of Io, Jupiter's 'tortured moon'

John Yang:

And finally tonight, more from the cosmos. New research is revealing the secrets of Io the mysterious volcanic moon of Jupiter.

For centuries after Galileo discovered Io and 1610, NASA said a first of its kind solar powered spacecraft called Juno on a five-year 1.7 billion mile journey to Jupiter and its moons to see what it could discover with a color camera called Juno cam.

Last week, NASA released animated artists conceptions of Io based on data Juno collected during two flybys. Juno's teams of scientists nicknamed this towering sharp peak feature Steeple Mountain, it's estimated to be as tall as 4.3 miles. By comparison, Mount Everest is just under 5.5 miles.

This 127 mile long Lake is called Loki Putera. It's filled with cooling magma and rimmed by hot lava. There are islands in the center. The reflections Juno cam captured suggest that part of Io's surface is as smooth as glass like the volcanic rock obsidian.

Eruptions from Io's hundreds of volcanoes illustrate why some call it the tortured moon. It's relentlessly squeezed by Jupiter's tidal forces, creating tremendous heat, melting rock and contributing to its status as the solar system's most volcanically active site.