Astronomy Now shows what we know about the structure and magnetic field of Ganymede, Jupiter's largest moon. (2015/03/13/)
The
magnetic field lines around Ganymede are generated in the iron core. [Image credit: NASA, ESA, and A. Feild (STScI)]
Interior of Ganymede, based on theoretical models, in-situ observations by NASA’s Galileo orbiter, and Hubble Space Telescope observations of the moon’s aurorae, which allows for a probe of the moon’s interior. Ices and a saline ocean dominate the outer layers. A denser rock mantle lies deeper in the moon, and finally an iron core beneath that. [Image credit: NASA, ESA, and A. Feild (STScI)]