Rain Man
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 708
. . . and water ice.
Bet the little fella goes back to being a "planet" rikki-tik.
ICE ON PLUTO: Now frozen water and BLUE SKY found on dwarf planet giving more hope of life
ICE ON PLUTO: Now frozen water and BLUE SKY found on dwarf planet giving more hope of life
NASA has discovered frozen water and earth-like blue skies on Pluto in another historic development in the search for extraterrestrial life.
By JON AUSTIN
PUBLISHED: 16:40, Thu, Oct 8, 2015 | UPDATED: 18:01, Thu, Oct 8, 2015
NASA
Just 10 days after confirming that liquid water has been found on Mars, the US space agency revealed the amazing dwarf-planet has both ice and a 'gorgeous' blue sky.
A Nasa spokesman said: "New Horizons has detected numerous small, exposed regions of water ice on Pluto.
"The discovery was made from data collected by the Ralph spectral composition mapper on New Horizons."
There has been repeated speculation Pluto may have a liquid sea under its surface, and confirmation of water ice on the surface adds to this theory.
Amazingly, much of the frozen ice has been found in a deep crack running from an interesting crater on Pluto first highlighted to Nasa by Express.co.uk as a potentially interesting feature back in July when images first beamed back.
At the time New Horizons planetary scientist David Grinspoon said it could be an eroded asteroid or comet impact crater and tectonic lines, hinting that the dwarf planet may still be geologically active.
Nasa
New close up images of Pluto's biggest moon Charon also reveal an asteroid pelted-past
RELATED ARTICLES
A new image released today shows a 280 miles across section showing hwere water was found.
A spokesman said: "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."
Alan Stern, Nasa New Horizons principal investigator, from Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), Boulder, Colorado, said: "Who would have expected a blue sky in the Kuiper Belt? It’s gorgeous.”
The haze particles themselves are likely grey or red, but the way they scatter blue light has drawn the attention of the New Horizons science team.
Bet the little fella goes back to being a "planet" rikki-tik.
ICE ON PLUTO: Now frozen water and BLUE SKY found on dwarf planet giving more hope of life
ICE ON PLUTO: Now frozen water and BLUE SKY found on dwarf planet giving more hope of life
NASA has discovered frozen water and earth-like blue skies on Pluto in another historic development in the search for extraterrestrial life.
By JON AUSTIN
PUBLISHED: 16:40, Thu, Oct 8, 2015 | UPDATED: 18:01, Thu, Oct 8, 2015
Just 10 days after confirming that liquid water has been found on Mars, the US space agency revealed the amazing dwarf-planet has both ice and a 'gorgeous' blue sky.
A Nasa spokesman said: "New Horizons has detected numerous small, exposed regions of water ice on Pluto.
"The discovery was made from data collected by the Ralph spectral composition mapper on New Horizons."
There has been repeated speculation Pluto may have a liquid sea under its surface, and confirmation of water ice on the surface adds to this theory.
Amazingly, much of the frozen ice has been found in a deep crack running from an interesting crater on Pluto first highlighted to Nasa by Express.co.uk as a potentially interesting feature back in July when images first beamed back.
At the time New Horizons planetary scientist David Grinspoon said it could be an eroded asteroid or comet impact crater and tectonic lines, hinting that the dwarf planet may still be geologically active.
New close up images of Pluto's biggest moon Charon also reveal an asteroid pelted-past
RELATED ARTICLES
-
Nasa 'impressive' announcement on Pluto IS imminent...but still no... -
PICTURED: Amazing new image that shows Pluto could hold...
A new image released today shows a 280 miles across section showing hwere water was found.
A spokesman said: "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."
Alan Stern, Nasa New Horizons principal investigator, from Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), Boulder, Colorado, said: "Who would have expected a blue sky in the Kuiper Belt? It’s gorgeous.”
The haze particles themselves are likely grey or red, but the way they scatter blue light has drawn the attention of the New Horizons science team.
