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🪐 Laplace Resonance of Jupiter's Moons

A real 3D orbital-mechanics model of Io, Europa and Ganymede locked in Jupiter's 1:2:4 Laplace resonance — watch the resonant angle librate, break the lock, and see how it drives Io's volcanism.

Physics & Mechanics3DAdvanced60 FPS

Io, Europa and Ganymede orbit Jupiter with real Keplerian angular speeds locked in an almost exact 1:2:4 ratio — watch the resonant angle librate around 180°, mark conjunctions, and detune Ganymede's period to see the lock break.

🔬 What It Demonstrates

A genuine three-body mean-motion resonance: the resonant angle φ = λ_Io − 3λ_Europa + 2λ_Ganymede stays bounded (librates) instead of drifting through all values, which is the mathematical signature of a resonance lock.

🎮 How to Use

Watch the libration graph and resonant-angle readout while the moons orbit. Drag the Ganymede period-offset slider to detune the resonance and see φ start to circulate instead of librate.

💡 Did You Know?

The resonance forces Io, Europa and Ganymede to never all align with Jupiter at once — that forced misalignment pumps Io's orbital eccentricity and powers its extreme volcanism.

⚙ Under the hood

A real 3D orbital-mechanics model of Io, Europa and Ganymede locked in Jupiter's 1:2:4 Laplace resonance — watch the resonant angle librate, break the lock, and see how it drives Io's volcanism.

orbital mechanicsresonancejupiter moonsio volcanismeuropaganymedecelestial mechanicsThree.js

3D · Three.js / WebGL renderer · 60 FPS target · runs fully client-side, no install