GANYMEDE IS THE LARGEST MOON in the
Solar System, larger than Titan by just 2%, and is composed of water ice surrounding a rocky mantle and an iron core, ice accounts for almost half the moon's mass.
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| Ganymede |
Like
Europa,
Ganymede shows evidence of a liquid salt-water ocean deep under its icy surface, warmed by tidal forces acting on the moon's core.
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| Structure of Ganymede |
The surface is covered in ancient dark patches which are saturated by impact craters, and less ancient lighter patches featuring grooves and ridges. It is not known why these two surface types exist , but it may have something to do with tectonic activity caused by tidal heating.
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| Craters of Ganymede |
Ganymede features a very thin oxygen atmosphere, the result of water ice on its surface being broken down by radiation from
Jupiter.
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