Galilean Moons Webquest – Pre-AP Write your answers on notebook paper – number as you go.

Start at http://astronomyonline.org/SolarSystem/GalileanMoons.asp (“Astronomy Online” – the first link on Favorite Links) Read all of the information first, then go back and read again to find your answers.

1. Who discovered the four largest moons of Jupiter? 2. When and how did he make this discovery? 3. What does the first picture show you? 4. List the four main moons of Jupiter. 5. What is Tidal Locking?

Now go to “Jupiter’s Moons: NASA Jet Propulsion Lab site” (2nd link) http://solarsystem.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/profile.cfm?Object=Jupiter&Display=Moons to find information about the specific moons. Find “Moons” at the top of the screen, and click on Jupiter. Read the first paragraph, and then click “More” to get to the information you need about the Galilean moons.

6. View the video of the Galilean moons in motion around Jupiter, and read the caption below the video. How far away was the Juno spacecraft when it collected the images? 7. List the four Galilean moons, in order from closest to farthest from Jupiter. Include the description for each one. 8. Io is the most ______body in the solar system. 9. What causes the “tides” on the solid surface of Io, how high does the surface rise, and what are the two effects of the “tides”? (Be sure to answer all three parts.) 10. How much water do scientists think Europa has? Describe the surface of Europa. 11. Have life forms been found on Europa? (yes or no) Specifically, where? 12. Ganymede is the ______moon in the entire solar system, and is the only moon known to have ______. 13. Describe the surface of Callisto. 14. What do the very few small craters on Callisto indicate? 15. What do Io, Ganymede and Europa have in common, that is not true of Callisto? 16. How do Ganymede and Europa influence Io as they orbit Jupiter at different speeds? 17. List the five probes that have provided us with much detailed information about the Galilean moons, along with the years they collected information.

Challenge:

18. “Potential” means having the possibility for something. “Habitable” means able to support life. “Analogues” are things that are similar to each other. Knowing that, what do the following sentences mean about the moon Europa? This moon intrigues astrobiologists because of its potential for having a "habitable zone." Life forms have been found thriving near subterranean volcanoes on Earth and in other extreme locations that may be analogues to what may exist on Europa.