Jupiter's Galilean Moons May Have Formed Bit By Bit, From Pebbles

These large moons’ complex combination of properties could be best explained if they grew slowly from pebbles.

By Erika K. Carlson
Dec 10, 2019 9:30 PMDec 10, 2019 10:15 PM
Galilean Moons Jupiter
The Galilean satellites Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto are the four largest moons of Jupiter. (Credit: NASA/JPL/DLR)

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Even in a backyard telescope, the four largest moons of Jupiter are big enough to be seen as little specks of light. And while humans have known about these “Galilean satellites” for centuries, there are still a lot of unanswered questions about how the moons formed. 

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