Post on 28-Jun-2020
transcript
TITLE Page: Image of Pluto constructed from 4 individual
images and has been altered to increase the color contrast.
Sources of data are: NASA/JHU-APL/SWRI, Kelly Beatty, Sky
and Telescope, Nov.2015. For educational use only.
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Four images from New Horizons’ Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) were
combined with color data from the Ralph instrument to create this global view of
Pluto. (The lower right edge of Pluto in this view currently lacks high-resolution color
coverage.) The images, taken when the spacecraft was 280,000 miles (450,000
kilometers) away, show features as small as 1.4 miles (2.2 kilometers), twice the
resolution of the single-image view taken on July 13.
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PLUTO (FALSE COLOR): False color has been added to this image of Pluto. The
bright white oval-shaped feature is Sputnik Planum (Plateau). It is part of the larger
Tombaugh Regio that encompasses the bluish-white regions to the south and south-
east of Sputnik Planum. In earlier, less-detailed images prior to this image, these
bright areas looked like the shape of a heart. The yellowish-brown tinted areas are
thought to be an overlay of organic compounds. The bluish area in the NE and the
purplish brown region in the SW are heavily covered with impact craters.
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Four images from New Horizons' Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) were
combined with color data from the Ralph instrument to create this enhanced color
global view of Pluto. (The lower right edge of Pluto in this view currently lacks high-
resolution color coverage.) The images, taken when the spacecraft was 280,000 miles
(450,000 kilometers) away, show features as small as 1.4 miles (2.2 kilometers). The
geographic grid is preliminary.
.
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Four images from New Horizons’ Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) were
combined with color data from the Ralph instrument to create this global view of
Pluto. (The lower right edge of Pluto in this view currently lacks high-resolution color
coverage.) The images, taken when the spacecraft was 280,000 miles (450,000
kilometers) away, show features as small as 1.4 miles (2.2 kilometers), twice the
resolution of the single-image view taken on July 13. .
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This image contains the initial, informal names being used by the New Horizons team
for the features and regions on the surface of Pluto. Names were selected based on the
input the team received from the Our Pluto naming campaign. Names have not yet
been approved by the International Astronomical Union (IAU).
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This image contains the initial, informal names being used by the New Horizons team
for the features on Pluto’s Sputnik Planum (plain). Names were selected based on the
input the team received from the naming campaign. Names have not yet been
approved by the International Astronomical Union (IAU).
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GAZETTEER OF PLANETARY NOMENCLATURE: Recommended planetary
nomenclature prepared by the Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature
of the International Astronomical Union (IAU).
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This synthetic perspective view of Pluto, based on the latest high-resolution images to
be downlinked from NASA's New Horizons spacecraft, shows what you would see if
you were approximately 1,100 miles (1,800 kilometers) above Pluto’s equatorial area,
looking northeast over the dark, cratered, informally named Cthulhu Regio toward the
bright, smooth, expanse of icy plains informally called Sputnik Planum. The entire
expanse of terrain seen in this image is 1,100 miles (1,800 kilometers) across. The
images were taken as New Horizons flew past Pluto on July 14, 2015, from a distance
of 50,000 miles (80,000 kilometers).
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Mosaic of high-resolution images of Pluto, sent back from NASA's New Horizons
spacecraft from Sept. 5 to 7, 2015. The image is dominated by the informally-named
icy plain Sputnik Planum, the smooth, bright region across the center. This image also
features a tremendous variety of other landscapes surrounding Sputnik. The smallest
visible features are 0.5 miles (0.8 kilometers) in size, and the mosaic covers a region
roughly 1,000 miles (1600 kilometers) wide. The image was taken as New Horizons
flew past Pluto on July 14, 2015, from a distance of 50,000 miles (80,000 kilometers).
This is a closeup of central Sputnik Planum with adjoining mountainous and heavily
cratered terrain al-Idris Montes and Viking Terra. Baré Montes, Hillary Montes,
Norgay Montes and Zeng He Montes extend above the relatively smooth surface of
Sputnik Planum. A tracery of a faint network of lines under the ice sheet is visible
under the western side. These lines become more visible, near the edge, as irregular
and discrete blocks. Farther west, the debris is deposited on the al-Idris Montes.
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This 220-mile (350-kilometer) wide view of Pluto from NASA's New Horizons
spacecraft illustrates the incredible diversity of surface reflectivities and geological
landforms on the dwarf planet. The image includes dark, ancient heavily cratered
terrain; bright, smooth geologically young terrain; assembled masses of mountains;
and an enigmatic field of dark, aligned ridges that resemble dunes; its origin is under
debate. The smallest visible features are 0.5 miles (0.8 kilometers) in size. This image
was taken as New Horizons flew past Pluto on July 14, 2015, from a distance of
50,000 miles (80,000 kilometers).
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CHAOS REGIO: The distinctive area of broken terrain, al-Idris Montes, is at the
extreme western edge of the relatively smooth Sputnik Planum ice sheet. This
western edge of the Sputnik Planum is fractured into large, presumably, icy blocks
that detach and melt to expose the rugged terrain beneath the former margin of the
ice-sheet. Near the center of the image is a depression that appears to be a former
glacial outflow lake. West of the al-Idris Montes there is the suggestion of a channel
that formed along the former maximum edge of the ice field. This proposed, now
abandoned, channel later filled in with progressibly finer debris which, in turn, formed
small networks of dunes. In the lower-left corner of the image are numerous craters,
some of which are reminiscent of many meteor impacts. This implies that the al-Idris
Montes are much younger than the Viking Terra.
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This cylindrical projection map of Pluto, in enhanced, extended color, is the most
detailed color map of Pluto ever made. It uses recently returned color imagery from
the New Horizons Ralph camera, which is draped onto a base map of images from the
NASA's spacecraft's Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI). The map can be
zoomed in to reveal exquisite detail with high scientific value. Color variations have
been enhanced to bring out subtle differences. Colors used in this map are the blue,
red, and near-infrared filter channels of the Ralph instrument.
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Regions with exposed water ice are highlighted in blue in this composite image from
New Horizons' Ralph instrument, combining visible imagery from the Multispectral
Visible Imaging Camera (MVIC) with infrared spectroscopy from the Linear Etalon
Imaging Spectral Array (LEISA). The strongest signatures of water ice occur along
Virgil Fossa, just west of Elliot crater on the left side of the inset image, and also in
Viking Terra near the top of the frame. A major out
also occurs in Baré Montes towards the right of the image, along with numerous much
smaller outcrops, mostly associated with impact craters and valleys between
mountains. The scene is approximately 280 miles (450 kilometers) across. Note that
all surface feature names are informal.
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Regions with exposed water ice are highlighted in blue in this composite image from
New Horizons' Ralph instrument, combining visible imagery from the Multispectral
Visible Imaging Camera (MVIC) with infrared spectroscopy from the Linear Etalon
Imaging Spectral Array (LEISA). The strongest signatures of water ice occur along
Virgil Fossa, just west of Elliot crater on the left side of the inset image, and also in
Viking Terra near the top of the frame. A major outcrop also occurs in Baré Montes
towards the right of the image, along with numerous much smaller outcrops, mostly
associated with impact craters and valleys between mountains. The scene is
approximately 280 miles (450 kilometers) across. Note that all surface feature names
are informal.
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Within the circled region of Pluto's Sputnik Planum, New Horizons Ralph instrument
has detected frozen methane, nitrogen, and carbon monoxide.
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Artist’s concept of the interaction of the solar wind (the supersonic outflow of
electrically charged particles from the Sun) with Pluto’s predominantly nitrogen
atmosphere. Some of the molecules that form the atmosphere have enough energy to
overcome Pluto’s weak gravity and escape into space, where they are ionized by solar
ultraviolet radiation. As the solar wind encounters the obstacle formed by the ions, it
is slowed and diverted (depicted in the red region), possibly forming a shock wave
upstream of Pluto. The ions are “picked up” by the solar wind and carried in its flow
past the dwarf planet to form an ion or plasma tail (blue region). The Solar Wind
around Pluto (SWAP) instrument on the New Horizons spacecraft made the first
measurements of this region of low-energy atmospheric ions shortly after closest
approach on July 14. Such measurements will enable the SWAP team to determine the
rate at which Pluto loses its atmosphere and, in turn, will yield insight into the
evolution of the Pluto’s atmosphere and surface. Also illustrated are the orbits of
Pluto’s five moons and the trajectory of the spacecraft.
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The Ralph/LEISA infrared spectrometer on NASA's New Horizons spacecraft mapped
compositions across Pluto's surface as it flew past the planet on July 14, 2015. On the
left, a map of methane ice abundance shows striking regional differences, with
stronger methane absorption indicated by the brighter purple colors, and lower
abundances shown in black. Data have only been received so far for the left half of
Pluto’s disk. At right, the methane map is merged with higher-resolution images from
the spacecraft’s Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI).
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High-resolution images of Pluto taken by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft just
before closest approach on July 14, 2015, reveal features as small as 270 yards (250
meters) across, from craters to faulted mountain blocks, to the textured surface of the
vast basin informally called Sputnik Planum. Enhanced color has been added from the
global color image. This image is about 330 miles (530 kilometers) across.
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High-resolution images of Pluto taken by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft just
before closest approach on July 14, 2015, reveal features as small as 270 yards (250
meters) across, from craters to faulted mountain blocks, to the textured surface of the
vast basin informally called Sputnik Planum. Enhanced color has been added from the
global color image. This image is about 330 miles (530 kilometers) across.
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High-resolution images of Pluto taken by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft just
before closest approach on July 14, 2015, reveal features as small as 270 yards (250
meters) across, from craters to faulted mountain blocks, to the textured surface of the
vast basin informally called Sputnik Planum. Enhanced color has been added from the
global color image. This image is about 330 miles (530 kilometers) across.
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High-resolution images of Pluto taken by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft just
before closest approach on July 14, 2015, are the sharpest images to date of Pluto's
varied terrain-revealing details down to scales of 270 meters. In this 75-mile (120-
kilometer) section taken from the larger, high-resolution mosaic, the textured surface
of the plain surrounds two isolated ice mountains.
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In this extended color image of Pluto taken by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft,
rounded and bizarrely textured mountains, informally named the Tartarus Dorsa, rise
up along Pluto's day-night terminator and show intricate but puzzling patterns of blue-
gray ridges and reddish material in between. This view, roughly 330 miles (530
kilometers) across, combines blue, red and infrared images taken by the
Ralph/Multispectral Visual Imaging Camera (MVIC) on July 14, 2015, and resolves
details and colors on scales as small as 0.8 miles (1.3 kilometers).
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Two different versions of an image of Pluto's haze layers, taken by New Horizons as it
looked back at Pluto's dark side nearly 16 hours after close approach, from a distance
of 480,000 miles (770,000 kilometers), at a phase angle of 166 degrees. Pluto's north
is at the top, and the sun illuminates Pluto from the upper right. These images are
much higher quality than the digitally compressed images of Pluto's haze downlinked
and released shortly after the July 14 encounter, and allow many new details to be
seen. The left version has had only minor processing, while the right version has been
specially processed to reveal a large number of discrete haze layers in the atmosphere.
In the left version, faint surface details on the narrow sunlit crescent are seen through
the haze in the upper right of Pluto's disk, and subtle parallel streaks in the haze may
be crepuscular rays- shadows cast on the haze by topography such as mountain ranges
on Pluto, similar to the rays sometimes seen in the sky after the sun sets behind
mountains on Earth.
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Pluto's haze layer shows its blue color in this picture taken by the New Horizons
Ralph/Multispectral Visible Imaging Camera (MVIC). The high-altitude haze is
thought to be similar in nature to that seen at Saturn’s moon Titan. The source of both
hazes likely involves sunlight-initiated chemical reactions of nitrogen and methane,
leading to relatively small, soot-like particles (called tholins) that grow as they settle
toward the surface. This image was generated by software that combines information
from blue, red and near-infrared images to replicate the color a human eye would
perceive as closely as possible.
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Image of Pluto's hazes; false-color inset reveals a variety of structures, including two
distinct layers
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Just 15 minutes after its closest approach to Pluto on July 14, 2015, NASA's New
Horizons spacecraft looked back toward the sun and captured this near-sunset view of
the rugged, icy mountains and flat ice plains extending to Pluto's horizon. The smooth
expanse of the informally named icy plain Sputnik Planum (right) is flanked to the
west (left) by rugged mountains up to 11,000 feet (3,500 meters) high, including the
informally named Norgay Montes in the foreground and Hillary Montes on the
skyline. To the right, east of Sputnik, rougher terrain is cut by apparent glaciers. The
backlighting highlights more than a dozen layers of haze in Pluto’s tenuous but
distended atmosphere. The image was taken from a distance of 11,000 miles (18,000
kilometers) to Pluto; the scene is 780 miles (1,250 kilometers) wide.
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In this small section of the larger crescent image of Pluto, taken by NASA's New
Horizons just 15 minutes after the spacecraft's closest approach on July 14, 2015, the
setting sun illuminates a fog or near-surface haze, which is cut by the parallel shadows
of many local hills and small mountains. The image was taken from a distance of
11,000 miles (18,000 kilometers), and the width of the image is 115 miles (185
kilometers).
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NASA's New Horizons captured this high-resolution enhanced color view of Charon
just before closest approach on July 14, 2015. The image combines blue, red and
infrared images taken by the spacecraft's Ralph/Multispectral Visual Imaging Camera
(MVIC); the colors are processed to best highlight the variation of surface properties
across Charon. Charon's color palette is not as diverse as Pluto's; most striking is the
reddish north (top) polar region, informally named Mordor Macula. Charon is 754
miles (1,214 kilometers) across; this image resolves details as small as 1.8 miles (2.9
kilometers).
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High-resolution images of Charon were taken by the Long Range Reconnaissance
Imager (LORRI) on NASA's New Horizons spacecraft, shortly before closest
approach on July 14, 2015, and overlaid with enhanced color from the
Ralph/Multispectral Visual Imaging Camera (MVIC). Charon's cratered uplands at the
top are broken by series of canyons, and replaced on the bottom by the rolling plains
of the informally named Vulcan Planum. The scene covers Charon’s width of 754
miles (1,214 kilometers) and resolves details as small as 0.5 miles (0.8 kilometers).
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Pluto and Charon are shown in a composite of natural-color images from New
Horizons. Images from the Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) were
combined with color data from the Ralph instrument to produce these views, which
portray Pluto and Charon as an observer riding on the spacecraft would see them. The
images were acquired on July 13 and 14, 2015
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A composite of enhanced color images of Pluto (lower right) and Charon (upper left),
taken by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft as it passed through the Pluto system on
July 14, 2015. This image highlights the striking differences between Pluto and
Charon. The color and brightness of both Pluto and Charon have been processed
identically to allow direct comparison of their surface properties, and to highlight the
similarity between Charon's polar red terrain and Pluto's equatorial red terrain. Pluto
and Charon are shown with approximately correct relative sizes, but their true
separation is not to scale. The image combines blue, red and infrared images taken by
the spacecraft's Ralph/Multispectral Visual Imaging Camera (MVIC).
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