The cycles driving Io’s tectonics

Elements
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Abstract

Io is famous for its active volcanoes, but its vigorous tectonics, which are unlike Earth’s plate tectonics, are no less remarkable. The nature of Io’s thick, cold, brittle lithosphere has been revealed through decades of investigations. The dynamics of this system is most easily explained by considering three cycles: magmatic, tectonic, and sulfurous. The magmatic cycle transports heat by a “heat pipe” process that may have operated during the earliest histories of many of the rocky bodies in the Solar System. The subsidence of the erupted lavas drives mountain uplift in the tectonic cycle. Sulfurous fluids could have a significant impact on the movement of both heat and rock.

Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title The cycles driving Io’s tectonics
Series title Elements
DOI 10.2138/gselements.18.6.393
Volume 18
Issue 6
Year Published 2022
Language English
Publisher Mineralogical Society of America
Contributing office(s) Astrogeology Science Center
Description 6 p.
First page 393
Last page 398
Other Geospatial Io
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