Most powerful volcano in the Solar System
- Who
- Loki Patera, Io
- What
- 10,000 square kilometre(s)
- Where
- Unknown (In orbit around Jupiter)
- When
- 01 January 0001
Loki Patera, an active volcano on Jupiter's moon Io, emits more heat than all of Earth's active volcanos put together. The volcano has an enormous caldera (volcanic crater) which measures more than 10,000 km² (4,000 miles²) and is regularly flooded with molten lava.
Loki Patera is regularly monitored from Earth-bound infrared telescopes and has also been observed by NASA's Galileo spacecraft, currently orbiting Jupiter.
The volcanic activity on Io was first discovered by Voyager 1 in 1979.
Although Loki's activity is variable, it can emit in excess of 10 to the power of 12 watts of power