Io experiences strong, periodic, gravitational tides from Jupiter because of its close distance to the planet and its elliptic orbit. This generates internal friction that heats the interior, a naturally occurring process in the Solar System and beyond. Io is unique in our Solar System because it gets most of its internal energy from this tidal heating, providing an ideal laboratory for improving our understanding of this fundamental process that plays a key role in the thermal and orbital evolution of the Moon, satellites in the outer Solar System, and extrasolar planets.
Io is a priority destination for solar system exploration, as it is the best natural laboratory to study the intertwined processes of tidal heating, extreme volcanism, and atmospheremagnetosphere interactions. Io exploration is relevant to understanding terrestrial planets and moons (including the early Earth), ocean worlds, and exoplanets across the cosmos. The scope and importance of science questions at Io necessitates a broad portfolio of research and analysis, telescopic observations, and planetary missions-including a dedicated New Frontiers class Io mission.Recommendation 1: We strongly recommend a dedicated New Frontiers class Io mission for the next decade. As outlined in a companion white paper, The Science Case for Io, Io is a priority destination for future exploration. There is much that can only be learned through detailed in situ measurements and observations from a dedicated Io mission. Even as nextgeneration telescopes come online, we are unlikely to achieve spatial resolutions better than tens of kilometers, and we cannot make observations of Io's poles or night hemisphere. There are also entire suites of in situ measurements which are simply not possible without visiting Io-like measuring Io's gravity and magnetic fields, or sampling its plumes and atmosphere. Furthermore, a dedicated mission to Io in the coming decade is timely, as it would enhance the science return from current and future Jupiter-system missions (Juno, Europa Clipper, JUICE), enabling true system science and contemporaneous investigations of the tidal and orbital evolution of the entire Jovian system. A mission to Io could also inform and guide forthcoming exoplanet observations with next-generation telescopes, and inform our understanding of the origins of life through implications for the early Earth and tidally heated ocean worlds like Europa, Enceladus, and Titan.Box 1 outlines a notional mission concept for a dedicated Io mission that could plausibly address all of the Priority Science Questions outlined in The Science Case for Io. This "Io Observer" concept is an amalgam of multiple different concepts, ideas, and mission proposals [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] . While we highlight one particular concept we encourage the decadal survey to allow flexibility in implementation. The past decade is characterized by mission selections that exemplify how new, innovative, and bold ideas have the power to transform the field (e.g., Dragonfly 17 ). A Jupiterorbiting, multiple-flyby, Io Observer may be the prevailing approach at this time, but out-of-thebox concepts may be capable of addressing a preponderance of Priority Science Questions, including orbiters, landers, impactors, and distant observers.The cost of the notional Io Observer mission concept outlined in Box 1 requires a detailed study by the decadal survey (see Recommendation 2). Io mission concepts have previously targeted either the Discovery program 1,3,7,10,12,15 or the New Frontiers program 2,6,8-9,13-14 , with sporadic discussion of Fla...
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