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| New color images from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft show two very different faces of the mysterious dwarf planet, one with a series of intriguing spots along the equator that are evenly spaced. NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI |
Some articles still remove Pluto from the planet family; others refer to it as a "planetoid" (small). We're 11 days from the closest flyby of the dwarf in our neighborhood right before the Oort Cloud and interstellar space. July 14th should be an exciting day in science.
New color images from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft show two very different faces of the mysterious dwarf planet, one with a series of intriguing spots along the equator that are evenly spaced. Each of the spots is about 300 miles (480 kilometers) in diameter, with a surface area that’s roughly the size of the state of Missouri.
Scientists have yet to see anything quite like the dark spots; their presence has piqued the interest of the New Horizons science team due to the remarkable consistency in their spacing and size. While the origin of the spots is a mystery for now, the answer may be revealed as the spacecraft continues its approach to the mysterious dwarf planet. “It’s a real puzzle — we don’t know what the spots are, and we can’t wait to find out,” said New Horizons Principal Investigator Alan Stern of the Southwest Research Institute, Boulder. “Also puzzling is the longstanding and dramatic difference in the colors and appearance of Pluto compared to its darker and grayer moon Charon.” [1]
On July 14, New Horizons will zoom within just 7,800 miles (12,500 kilometers) of Pluto, snapping history's first up-close photos of the dwarf planet's mysterious surface.
On July 1, NASA released images showing Pluto and its largest moon, Charon, in true color. The photos reveal a series of evenly spaced dark splotches, each of them about 300 miles (480 kilometers) wide, near Pluto's equator on one side of the dwarf planet.
New Horizons scientists don't know what to make of the features yet. [2]
1. Astronomy: Spots on Pluto fascinate as New Horizons gets the all clear, NASA, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab, Laurel, Maryland
2. Space.com: On Pluto's Doorstep: Latest Photos by Approaching New Horizons Probe, Space.com staff
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