Io

Initially promising for its colorful surface, researchers later discovered that Io's apparent tranquillity is, in actuality, evidence of its inhospitable and potentially maddening nature. Scattered across the moon's frozen surface, dozens of active valcanos spout molten sulfur from the core, sending it hundreds of kilometers into space.

Once cooled, the sulfur pours back down like snow, forever resurfacing the terrain with the otherwise harmless substance. This condition could prove a costly and time-consuming irritation for the colonists. Significant measures would need to be taken to avoid our facilities and equiptment from being buried.

Fortunately, a few other options have been suggested by our engineers. While sulfur is far more sedentary than water, they claim that an adequate drainage system could be fitted at a minimal cost. Similar in concept to the conventional drain pipes used for rain, lets of liquid would cycle through them to simulate movement.

Our chemists have offered another solution. By applying a layer of a corrosive compound, they believe they can dissolve the sulfur on contact and without consequence. Both of these techniques are unnproven as yet, but I assure you this issue is being addressed.

Aside from this annoyance, the only factors that are less than ideal are Io's enormous distance from Earth, its bitter cold temperatures, and its lack of life-sustaining resources. The first two conditions Io shares with its sibling contender, Europa, and are even more pressing for the remote moon of Titan.

Position: Satellite of Jupiter

Distance from Sun: 5.2 Astronomical Units

Distance from Earth: 630 Million Kilometers

Surface Gravity: 0.183

Surface Composition: Sulfur

Atmospheric Pressure: 0 Bar

Surface Temperature: -143 Celsius

Axis Rotation: Static

Sun Orbit Period: 4332.71 Days

Jupiter Orbit Period: 1.77 Days

Diameter: 3630 Kilometers