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7. What's making these gamma rays?
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Jupiter
on fire
Jupiter's north pole erupts in a spasm of light in this ultraviolet image, taken in 1998. Akin to Earth's aurora borealis, the light is caused by high-energy electrons travelling along Jupiter's magnetic field and then reaching the atmosphere in the polar regions. However, three bright spots are caused by electric currents generated by Jupiter's moons that are interacting with the giant planet's magnetic field. The brightest such "footprint" -- at the far left -- comes from the moon Io.
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