Smudges on images could be clouds that form at dawn and dusk, scientists report, and measurements of high reflectivity of Pluto’s “heart” add new evidence of a geologically young surface.
Pluto
Posted inNews
Scientists Solve Charon's Red Mystery
Why are Charon's poles dusted with reddish material?
Posted inNews
Six Things Dwarf Planets Have Taught Us About the Solar System
It's been 10 years since Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet. But no matter the label, it and its dwarf planet cousins continue to stun researchers with their complexity.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Pluto's Interactions with the Solar Wind Are Unique
Space physicists say that Pluto's atmosphere interacts with the solar wind in a never-before-seen hybrid way, one that's both comet-like and planet-like.
Posted inNews
Pluto: In the Icebox but Maybe Still Cookin'
New evidence of ice volcanoes and of middle-aged terrains on Pluto's surface suggests that the dwarf planet has remained geologically active ever since it first formed billions of years ago.
Posted inNews
New Spin on Pluto's Moons
Strangely speedy rotation rates of Pluto's tiny orbiting companions show up in a trove of images taken as the New Horizons spacecraft approached the dwarf planet last spring and early summer.
Posted inEditors' Vox
Pluto Is Just the Beginning
Pluto is the most distant object visited by a spacecraft, yet exploration of the Solar System is far from complete.
Posted inNews
Pluto Image Shows First Picture of Its Atmosphere
Scientists are amazed by new images that show Pluto's atmosphere and diverse geology.
Posted inNews
Pluto's Moons Nix and Hydra Show Their Faces
When the New Horizons spacecraft photographed Pluto last week, it snapped the most revealing images yet of two little-known moons of the dwarf planet.
Posted inNews
New Pluto Image Reveals Young Icy Plain
The mottled plain offers additional evidence that Pluto's surface is geologically young—and possibly still active.