Posted on 07/11/2015 5:05:40 PM PDT by BenLurkin
Take a good look at the latest picture of Pluto because it shows the face of the dwarf planet that will not be seen during next week's historic flyby.
The US space agency's New Horizons probe was less than 2.5 million km from the diminutive world on Saturday and closing in fast.
Come Tuesday, it will be grabbing shots from an altitude of just 12,500km.
But the newly published image, showing Pluto's "spots", is of the hemisphere that will soon rotate out of view.
It will not be seen again until after New Horizons has gone behind the 2,300km-wide dwarf, and then only in the faint light reflected off the little planet's biggest moon, Charon.
That in itself should make for some fascinating science, however, because it will tell researchers what happens on Pluto's dark side.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
ping
“What happens on Pluto’s dark side”
Smoking and drinking and swearing.
They need a dedicated probe for the Plutonian system. Where is the next target?
And petting.....HEAVY petting.
New Horizons is Kuiper belt bound but I don’t think they have a target yet.
Good grief...Voyager 2 hasn’t reached that yet,,whats their timeline?
“Dwarf planet”
Don’t you listen to them, Pluto! You are special! I think that you are just the right size. Oh sure, some people like those big, flashy planets, but you are number one in my book! They just use those mean names to make themselves feel bigger. You are perfect and don’t let anyone tell you different!
Hot space chick explains why a flyby and not an orbit or landing.
Pluto is a Kuiper belt object on the innermost boundary. Voyager 1 is way the hell out there.
...
And we’re still collecting data from it, almost on a daily basis.
it is very very very round... like a PLANET!!
It still has propellent left! Probably used for facing the dish toward us when we need it to, but it still has some!
Someone should draw a face on that
The Kuiper belt extends from the orbit of Neptune (at 30 AU) to approximately 50 AU from the Sun.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuiper_belt
I’ve asked you and asked you to stop posting my family photos on Free Republic.
My cousin Jeff can’t help the way he looks.
Sounds like you have a Plutonic relationship with this planet.
lol!
And I have a mercurial relationship with another planet.
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