Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Astronomy Picture of the Day - Charon: Moon of Pluto
NASA ^ | 6 Jun, 2026 | Image Credit: NASA, Johns Hopkins Univ./APL, Southwest Research Institute, U.S. Naval Observatory

Posted on 06/06/2026 12:42:37 PM PDT by MtnClimber

Explanation: A darkened and mysterious north polar region known to some as Mordor Macula caps this premier view of Charon, Pluto's largest moon. The high-resolution image was captured by the interplanetary space probe New Horizons near its closest approach to distant Pluto on July 14, 2015. The combined blue, red, and infrared image data was processed to enhance colors and follow variations in Charon's surface properties with a resolution of about 2.9 kilometers (1.8 miles). A stunning image of Charon's Pluto-facing hemisphere, it also features a clear view of an apparently moon-girdling belt of fractures and canyons that seems to separate smooth southern plains from varied northern terrain. Charon is 1,214 kilometers (754 miles) across. That's about 1/10th the size of planet Earth but a whopping 1/2 the diameter of Pluto itself, and makes it the largest satellite relative to its parent body in the Solar System. Still, the moon appears as a small bump at about the 1 o'clock position on Pluto's disk in the grainy, negative, telescopic picture inset at upper left. That image was used by James Christy and Robert Harrington at the U.S. Naval Observatory in Flagstaff to discover Charon in June of 1978.


TOPICS: Astronomy; Astronomy Picture of the Day; Science
KEYWORDS: apod; nasa

Click here: to donate by Credit Card

Or here: to donate by PayPal

Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794

Thank you very much and God bless you.

To be added or removed from the Astronomy Picture of the Day ping list please send me a request via "Private Reply" (Mail).

For more detail go to the link and click on the image for a high definition image. You can then move the magnifying glass cursor then click to zoom in and click again to zoom out. When zoomed in you can scan by moving the side bars on the bottom and right side of the image.

1 posted on 06/06/2026 12:42:37 PM PDT by MtnClimber
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber

2 posted on 06/06/2026 12:42:55 PM PDT by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: 21stCenturion; 21twelve; 4everontheRight; A Navy Vet; A_perfect_lady; abb; AFB-XYZ; AFPhys; ...
Pinging the APOD list

🪐 🌟 🌌 šŸ”

3 posted on 06/06/2026 12:43:45 PM PDT by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber

Looks like it has a hangover.


4 posted on 06/06/2026 12:53:09 PM PDT by ComputerGuy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber

Like Pluto, really desolate looking.


5 posted on 06/06/2026 12:59:55 PM PDT by SkyDancer ( ~ Am Yisrael Chai ~)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber

THANK YOU!


6 posted on 06/06/2026 1:01:07 PM PDT by Scarlett156 (Remember to pray. )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: SkyDancer
Next to Earth, Pluto is the most beautiful planet in the Solar System.


7 posted on 06/06/2026 1:13:27 PM PDT by DoodleBob (Gravity's waiting period is about 9.8 m/s²)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: DoodleBob

Wow, and thanks for those images.


8 posted on 06/06/2026 1:16:43 PM PDT by SkyDancer ( ~ Am Yisrael Chai ~)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: SkyDancer

Anytime FRiend. Be safe up there.


9 posted on 06/06/2026 1:20:12 PM PDT by DoodleBob (Gravity's waiting period is about 9.8 m/s²)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber
What an interesting group of worlds. It would be neat to explore them in detail, but that’s not likely to happen anytime soon.

Hard to believe it’s been 11 years….

10 posted on 06/06/2026 2:17:59 PM PDT by telescope115 (Ad Astra, Ad Deum…)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: DoodleBob

:D


11 posted on 06/06/2026 2:22:54 PM PDT by SkyDancer ( ~ Am Yisrael Chai ~)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber

Looks like it got too close to Uranus.


12 posted on 06/06/2026 2:30:09 PM PDT by blueunicorn6 ("A crack shot and a good dancerā€ )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber

Interesting. Wonder what made that rust colored gouge on the surface.


13 posted on 06/06/2026 2:51:21 PM PDT by jmacusa ( Liberals. Too stupid to be idiots.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: ComputerGuy
Looks like it has a hangover.

Hangover? It looks more like an old beat-up croquet ball. More like orbital whiplash. Pluto served some strong stuff last night...


14 posted on 06/06/2026 6:43:25 PM PDT by Deaf and Discerning
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson