File:Callisto true color.jpg

True-color full-face image of Callisto by spacecraft Galileo.

Original caption

Bright scars on a darker surface testify to a long history of impacts on Jupiter's moon Callisto in this image of Callisto from NASA's Galileo spacecraft.

The picture, taken in May 2001, is the only complete global color image of Callisto obtained by Galileo, which orbited Jupiter from December 1995 until September 2003. Of Jupiter's four largest moons, Callisto orbits farthest from the giant planet.

Callisto's surface is uniformly cratered but is not uniform in color or brightness. Scientists believe the brighter areas are mainly ice and the darker areas are highly eroded, ice-poor material.

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Galileo mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. Additional information about the spacecraft and its discoveries is available on the Galileo home page at http://galileo.jpl.nasa.gov.

Copyright information

This image is served on a site belonging to NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Per JPL/NASA policy and applicable United States federal law, such images are in the public domain, or, if they are owned by individuals or institutions other than NASA or JPL, may be used for any journalistic, educational, or personal purpose (but not a commercial purpose) without further authorization. NASA and JPL images, other than their respective institutional logos, or photographs of actual persons, are not subject to copyright and may be used without additional permission, unless otherwise declared. For details, see the JPL Image Use Policy Declaration.

Source

• Credits: Galileo Project/JPL/NASA/German Aerospace Center
• Source page: <http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA03456>