Pluto - NASA Science
WEBPluto is a dwarf planet located in a distant region of our solar system beyond Neptune known as the Kuiper Belt. Pluto was long considered our ninth planet, but the International Astronomical Union reclassified Pluto as a dwarf planet in 2006. NASA's New Horizons was the first spacecraft to explore Pluto up close, flying by in 2015. Pluto was ...
In Depth | Pluto – NASA Solar System Exploration
WEBPluto is a complex and mysterious world with mountains, valleys, plains, craters, and maybe glaciers. Discovered in 1930, Pluto was long considered our solar system's ninth planet. But after the discovery of similar intriguing worlds deeper in the distant Kuiper Belt, icy Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet.
Pluto Facts - Science@NASA
WEBPluto's low gravity (about 6% of Earth's) causes the atmosphere to be much more extended in altitude than our planet's atmosphere. Pluto becomes much colder during the part of each year when it is traveling far away from the Sun.
Five Years after New Horizons’ Historic Flyby, Here Are 10 ... - NASA
WEBJul 14, 2020 · Five years ago today, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft made history. After a voyage of nearly 10 years and more than 3 billion miles, the intrepid piano-sized probe flew within 7,800 miles of Pluto. For the first time ever, we saw the surface of this distant world in spectacular, colored detail.
Find Your Pluto Time - Science@NASA
WEBSunlight is much weaker there than it is here on Earth, yet it isn't completely dark. In fact, for just a moment near dawn and dusk each day, the illumination on Earth matches that of high noon on Pluto. We call this Pluto Time.
NASA’s Three-Billion-Mile Journey to Pluto Reaches Historic …
WEBJul 14, 2015 · NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft is at Pluto. After a decade-long journey through our solar system, New Horizons made its closest approach to Pluto Tuesday, about 7,750 miles above the surface — roughly the same distance from New York to Mumbai, India – making it the first-ever space mission to explore a world so far from Earth.
All About Pluto | NASA Space Place – NASA Science for Kids
WEBSep 1, 2024 · It's an area full of icy bodies and other dwarf planets at the edge of our solar system. Pluto is known as the "King of the Kuiper Belt" – and it's the largest object in the region, even though another object similar in size, called Eris, has a slightly higher mass. One thing is certain.
Four Months after Pluto Flyby, NASA’s New Horizons Yields …
WEBNov 9, 2015 · Locations of more than 1,000 craters mapped on Pluto by NASA’s New Horizons mission indicate a wide range of surface ages, which likely means Pluto has been geologically active throughout its history.
Latest Images of Pluto from New Horizons - NASA
WEBJul 6, 2015 · These are the most recent high-resolution views of Pluto sent by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft, including one showing the four mysterious dark spots on Pluto that have captured the imagination of the world.
Pluto's Close-up, Now in Color - NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory …
WEBDec 10, 2015 · Pluto's Close-up, Now in Color. This enhanced color mosaic combines some of the sharpest views of Pluto that NASA's New Horizons spacecraft obtained during its July 14 flyby. The pictures are part of a sequence taken near New Horizons' closest approach to Pluto, with resolutions of about 250-280 feet (77-85 meters) per pixel -- …