Increased Tidal Dissipation Using Advanced Rheological Models: Implications for Io and Tidally Active Exoplanets

Melting of io by tidal dissipation.

The dissipation of tidal energy in Jupiter's satellite Io is likely to have melted a major fraction of the mass. Consequences of a largely molten interior may be evident in pictures of Io's surface returned by Voyager I.

Temperature Distributions on Tidally-locked Hot Exoplanets

Introduction: The discovery of over 250 exoplanets, many of which exist in conditions unlike any Solar System bodies, has motivated researchers to study these planets and place them within the greater context of planetary science. Of these discovered exoplanets, most are massive (Jupiter masses) and orbit very close to the parent-star, with orbital periods on the order of several days [1]. Addi...

Equatorial Superrotation on Tidally Locked Exoplanets

Tidal heating and convection in Io

[1] The prodigious heat flux emitted from the surface of Jupiter’s moon Io is produced in the interior of the satellite by viscoelastic dissipation of tidal energy and is generally thought to be brought to the surface by convective motions. New models of Io’s equilibrium thermal state are constructed using self-consistent calculations of tidal heating and convective heat transport. These models...

Spatial distribution of volcanoes on Io: Implications for tidal heating and magma ascent

Extreme volcanism on Io results from tidal heating, but its tidal dissipation mechanisms and magma ascent processes are poorly constrained. Here we analyze the distribution of volcanic hotspots and paterae identified within the first 1:15,000,000-scale global geologic map of Io to characterize their patterns of spatial organization. Ionian hotspots correspond to the locations of positive therma...