Updates NASA New Horizons Mission Updates

[Dantassii]

Has there been any discussion of concerns about why Pluto is collecting so many moons? Any speculation at all as to what its long-term plans are? Are they friendly?

Actually, I read a few days ago that the current theory on the moons of Pluto is they are remnants of the collision that formed Charon. Current theory is Charon was formed in a similar manner as our Moon was formed but as Pluto and Charon as much smaller than the Earth and Moon, the remnants of the collision did not get collected by the 2 largest surviving parts but instead formed additional moons. This is also why they were a bit worried about New Horizon's passage through the Pluto system. They were afraid that there might be other even smaller moonlets or dust particles left over from the collision that may cause problems for the space craft.

Dantassii
HUMONGOUS IMS shipbuilder

 

[K_Jameson]

Actually, I read a few days ago that the current theory on the moons of Pluto is they are remnants of the collision that formed Charon.

But Charon and Pluto have different compositions... Once I thought that Charon might have been captured in the early days, when the Kuiper belt was fare more populated than today...

 

[Ripley]

This is indubitably an emerging fact.

No. It's subsurface, so it's not emerging...

Just kidding! :rofl:

 

[Quick_Nick]

What about Nix, Styx and Hydra? If it were just Pluto and Charon orbiting their barycenter, I could believe that tidal forces would be negligible. But wouldn't the other moons exert small tidal forces?

That's an interesting thought, but I don't think that can be the case.
Quoting Wikipedia on the masses of the smaller moons: "At the larger end of this range, the inferred masses are less than 0.3% that of Charon, or 0.03% that of Pluto."
They are also a fair distance away from Pluto.

 

[Topper]

This new image of an area on Pluto's largest moon Charon has a captivating feature—a depression with a peak in the middle, shown here in the upper left corner of the inset.

 

[jedidia]

Looks like a mountain got too heavy and fell through the floor... What's the assumed major surface composition of Charon again? :hmm:

 

[Artlav]

What's the assumed major surface composition of Charon again? :hmm:

About 53% ice, 42% rock and 5% alien HQ.
The latter might have shrunk a bit after the aliens got bored of us and left.

 

[kamaz]

http://i.imgur.com/ZiRD56E.gifv

---------- Post added at 10:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:15 PM ----------

The surface looks just like Earth's Moon. Completely unlike Pluto.

It looks like the realm of ice and darkness contains many surprises.

 

[Thunder Chicken]

That's an interesting thought, but I don't think that can be the case.
Quoting Wikipedia on the masses of the smaller moons: "At the larger end of this range, the inferred masses are less than 0.3% that of Charon, or 0.03% that of Pluto."
They are also a fair distance away from Pluto.

True, but "small" doesn't always mean "negligible". I'm curious if constant small gravitational tweaking could build up enough tidal work to get things fluid. The only real way to move heat off the surface of Pluto is radiation, which isn't terribly efficient. Small tidal work + poor heat removal (might) = liquid oceans if you are patient. Just a thought.

Super cool science observations! Shouldn't there be a mass of people in Times Square in NYC chanting "Science! Science! Science!" right about now? If not, let's get on that. This is the best of our species at work.

 

[jedidia]

The latter might have shrunk a bit after the aliens got bored of us and left.

Last time I checked, they left Pluto in order to defend their home from THE ULTIMATE EVIIIIIL! :rofl:

 

[Andy44]

The mission is far from finished. Over the next few months we will downlink lots and lots of data. Imagine what will come in.

 

[MaverickSawyer]

The mission is far from finished. Over the next few months we will downlink lots and lots of data. Imagine what will come in.

Not to mention the possibility of a mission extension to target a Kuiper Belt object further out. They've got to pick a target for that soon if they want to make the intercept.

 

[statickid]

I was almost certain they already did? weren't there conclusive, decisive results from the Hubble search they did a few months back?

 

[Cairan]

They are scheduled to decide in August of this year I think... First I guess they wanted to see how the Pluto flyby went, get back some critital data, and while New Horizon goes back to take some plasma measurements and other low-bitrate data, decide where to go next.

There, found where I read about the August meeting... http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2015/07/new-horizons-pluto-historic-kuiper-encounter/

 

[C3PO]

Last time I checked, they left Pluto in order to defend their home from THE ULTIMATE EVIIIIIL! :rofl:

You need to clarify that. Are you talking about Facebook or "Reality" TV?

 

[jedidia]

Ok OF, now I am a little dissappointed. One of the probably most famous Star Control 2 references, and nobody gets it? And it's even in the context of talks about an alien base on Pluto (well, charon technically, but the link shouldn't be too tough). Oh well, maybe the game is a bit old by now. Let me see what I can dig up for clarification... ah, here we go, the conversation with Captain Fwiffo on Pluto:

It's funny enough to listen through the whole thing, but if you're in a hurry, at 2:55 is the reason why he is on Pluto, and the reason why he's the only one left, which connects to my joke, is at 5:00.

The whole thing of course turns around the fact that the Spathy's racial "hat" is cowardice and paranoia.

 

[SiberianTiger]

Ok OF, now I am a little dissappointed. One of the probably most famous Star Control 2 references, and nobody gets it?

The same thing dwelled my mind all along, but I was under impression nobody would have gotten it.

 

[statickid]

NASA will hold a media briefing at 1 p.m. EDT Friday, July 17, to reveal new images of Pluto and discuss new science findings from Tuesday’s historic flyby.

 

[Notebook]

BBC is covering it now:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-33565187


http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

might not get out the uk.

 

[RGClark]

Polygonal terrain on Pluto! Extraordinary! Usually seen in glacial terrain on Earth when ice melts!
Perhaps it can happen on Pluto's surface from liquid methane or liquid nitrogen.

Bob Clark