2022-10-14 11:00  P5A-1/Online

Planetary Volcanism, Cryovolcanism and Subsurface Ocean

Prof. Wei-Ling Tseng

In the solar system, currently we have observed active volcanos on Earth and Io (Jupiter’s satellite). Whether volcanos on Venus are still erupting or not is an open question and we can expect the upcoming space missions such as DAVINCI+ and VERITAS to reveal the answer. On the other hand, there are some icy bodies to be discovered with active cryovolcanism associated with the extrusion of liquid water and vapors. In this talk, I’ll primarily discuss two little icy bodies with active outgassing plumes in the solar system – Enceladus (orbiting Saturn) and Europa (orbiting Jupiter). First, I will give an introduction of planetary volcanism and cryovolcanism, and then go through the remarkable discovery of Enceladus’ water plumes and its subsurface ocean environment made by the Cassini spacecraft. In addition, a summary of current observations of Europa’s outgassing activity will be presented. Finally, I’ll talk about our work about further observations of active volcanism and cryovolcanism in the solar system, and a study of outgassing plume structures with a DSMC modeling.