On this day in space! Nov. 5, 2002: NASA's Galileo spacecraft flies by Jupiter moon Almathea only to find it's a 'pile of icy rubble less dense than water'
On Nov. 5, 2002, NASA's old Galileo spacecraft flew by a small moon called Amalthea and made a surprising find. Here's why it mattered.
On November 5, 2002, NASA's aging Galileo spacecraft encountered Jupiter's moon Amalthea, only to discover it was a collection of icy rubble with a density lighter than water. Amalthea, the reddest object in our solar system, generates more heat than it receives from the sun. Its orbit brings it perilously close to Jupiter's intense radiation, posing risks to spacecraft.
Galileo entered safe mode during the flyby, but NASA swiftly resolved the issue, restoring the spacecraft's functionality. This was the mission's final moon encounter, as Galileo would soon be crushed by Jupiter's atmosphere in September 2005. Amalthea's discovery by astronomer Edward Emerson Barnard in 1892 and its intriguing composition have contributed to our understanding of Jupiter's moons.
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