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New Horizon's Mission to Pluto : Watch

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posted on Jun, 30 2015 @ 10:18 PM
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originally posted by: 0bserver1
a reply to: Soylent Green Is People




 Charon may not have these icy materials.



I thought that ice would be something found on almost every moon or planet. I mean most of the time they find ice or water on most of the planets that are not to close to our sun.

There's plenty of ice out there, but it's usually covered in dust and hydrocarbons. Only the "fresh" ice can be found on the surface in a naked state, such as if it had been exposed or bought up to the surface by various processes like impacts or tidal forces.

On Pluto, surface ices may form as the "atmosphere" freezes and precipitates. Charon might simply not have enough gravity to hold on to these gasses or allow them to precipitate, and so they are lost into space (or get pulled towards Pluto).



posted on Jul, 1 2015 @ 10:14 AM
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Here's the latest news from the edge of the kuiper belt:

New Horizons ‘Speeds Up’ on Final Approach to Pluto


The latest (and possibly final) course correction engine burn occurred yesterday (June 30) to put New Horizons on the trajectory researchers want for Studying Pluto:


The 23-second thruster burst was the third and final planned targeting maneuver of New Horizons’ approach phase to Pluto; it was also the smallest of the nine course corrections since New Horizons launched in January 2006. It bumped the spacecraft’s velocity by just 27 centimeters per second – about one-half mile per hour – slightly adjusting its arrival time and position at a flyby close-approach target point approximately 7,750 miles (12,500 kilometers) above Pluto’s surface.


The small adjustment in the speed of the spacecraft was necessary for New Horizons to be in exactly the right place at the right time to be able to best analyze Pluto's atmosphere as the craft speeds by the dwarf planet on July 14.


While it may appear to be a minute adjustment for a spacecraft moving 32,500 miles per hour, the impact is significant. New Horizons Mission Design Lead Yanping Guo, of the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, says without the adjustment, New Horizons would have arrived 20 seconds late and 114 miles (184 kilometers) off-target from the spot where it will measure the properties of Pluto’s atmosphere. Those measurements depend on radio signals being sent from Earth to New Horizons at precise times as the spacecraft flies through the shadows of Pluto and Pluto’s largest moon, Charon.



edit on 7/1/2015 by Soylent Green Is People because: (no reason given)



posted on Jul, 2 2015 @ 04:17 AM
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originally posted by: Soylent Green Is People
Here's the latest news from the edge of the kuiper belt:

New Horizons ‘Speeds Up’ on Final Approach to Pluto


The latest (and possibly final) course correction engine burn occurred yesterday (June 30) to put New Horizons on the trajectory researchers want for Studying Pluto:


The 23-second thruster burst was the third and final planned targeting maneuver of New Horizons’ approach phase to Pluto; it was also the smallest of the nine course corrections since New Horizons launched in January 2006. It bumped the spacecraft’s velocity by just 27 centimeters per second – about one-half mile per hour – slightly adjusting its arrival time and position at a flyby close-approach target point approximately 7,750 miles (12,500 kilometers) above Pluto’s surface.


The small adjustment in the speed of the spacecraft was necessary for New Horizons to be in exactly the right place at the right time to be able to best analyze Pluto's atmosphere as the craft speeds by the dwarf planet on July 14.


While it may appear to be a minute adjustment for a spacecraft moving 32,500 miles per hour, the impact is significant. New Horizons Mission Design Lead Yanping Guo, of the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, says without the adjustment, New Horizons would have arrived 20 seconds late and 114 miles (184 kilometers) off-target from the spot where it will measure the properties of Pluto’s atmosphere. Those measurements depend on radio signals being sent from Earth to New Horizons at precise times as the spacecraft flies through the shadows of Pluto and Pluto’s largest moon, Charon.




I am TOO excited...This, for me, is something i dreamed of since childhood. I cant believe its about to happen



posted on Jul, 2 2015 @ 04:46 AM
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It certainly will be a special day. We will finally get to see Pluto and Charon as they really are, and not as an artist's impression. I am also looking forward to seeing relatively close range photos of the other moons, and the various surface features on Pluto and Charon. I am expecting some nice surprises, although (I hasten to add) that does NOT include alien cities!!!



posted on Jul, 2 2015 @ 11:04 AM
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One hemisphere of Pluto reveals what looks like a huge crater, better than half the planet's diameter. An impact on this scale would probably destroy the structure of the planet, and erase all traces of itself. Either Pluto is remarkably resistant to impact, or some other explanation for this feature will probably have to be devised.
The other hemisphere has a straight line of several large, rounded, dark features of like size and evenly spaced. Why they should be arrayed like this is not currently explainable.
Link, below to an article, with pictures of either hemisphere, apparent huge crater, and self-similar row of dark circles. Magnifying the images with your computer will make the features much easier to see clearly.
www.bbc.com...
edit on 2-7-2015 by Ross 54 because: added information

edit on 2-7-2015 by Ross 54 because: added qualifying term



posted on Jul, 2 2015 @ 11:12 AM
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originally posted by: Ross 54
One hemisphere of Pluto reveals what looks like a huge crater, better than half the planet's diameter. An impact on this scale would probably destroy the structure of the planet, and erase all traces of itself.


Told ya so:

www.abovetopsecret.com...


originally posted by: Junkheap
I predict that one of the features they'll find is a huge big-ass crater taking up a large percentage of the landscape.



posted on Jul, 2 2015 @ 11:53 AM
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originally posted by: Junkheap

originally posted by: Ross 54
One hemisphere of Pluto reveals what looks like a huge crater, better than half the planet's diameter. An impact on this scale would probably destroy the structure of the planet, and erase all traces of itself.


Told ya so:

www.abovetopsecret.com...


originally posted by: Junkheap
I predict that one of the features they'll find is a huge big-ass crater taking up a large percentage of the landscape.


Very impressive mate. Now, how about those lottery numbers? Come on! Dont be greedy



posted on Jul, 2 2015 @ 01:14 PM
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originally posted by: Junkheap

originally posted by: Ross 54
One hemisphere of Pluto reveals what looks like a huge crater, better than half the planet's diameter. An impact on this scale would probably destroy the structure of the planet, and erase all traces of itself.


Told ya so:

www.abovetopsecret.com...


originally posted by: Junkheap
I predict that one of the features they'll find is a huge big-ass crater taking up a large percentage of the landscape.


Is it possible that the dark spots are the hydrocarbon tars that are thought to exist on Pluto (with the lighter areas possibly being carbon monoxide frost)?



posted on Jul, 2 2015 @ 02:57 PM
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Update:



We are getting closer



posted on Jul, 2 2015 @ 10:41 PM
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The latest LORRI images show not only Pluto and Charon, I've also just found the little moon Hydra: pluto.jhuapl.edu...
It's a small and dim blob of light about 10 o'clock from Charon.

Here's an enhanced image I made to point it out:



I've verified this in Stellarium.



posted on Jul, 3 2015 @ 06:16 AM
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originally posted by: Kapusta
Update:



We are getting closer


Beautiful. Looks like that huge crater has kind of dissapeared. Guess we will know in 10 days time.



posted on Jul, 8 2015 @ 06:38 PM
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The latest LORRI images are in, and wow do we have some nice detail!

Enlarged image:



(it seems that resizing an image right in my Firefox browser makes the result very nice and smooth, no pixellation what-so-ever)

Here's an enhanced version:


edit on 8-7-2015 by wildespace because: (no reason given)



posted on Jul, 8 2015 @ 09:58 PM
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Wild speculation here, but I wonder if those darkest areas are clouds, and the lighter area is an ocean of methane or neon?



posted on Jul, 9 2015 @ 04:15 AM
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originally posted by: xxThothxx
Wild speculation here, but I wonder if those darkest areas are clouds, and the lighter area is an ocean of methane or neon?

Pluto's gravity and atmosphere aren't sufficien for such features. It's too cold there for liquid gasses, they either freeze solid or sublimate into gas. The lighter areas are most probably frozen gasses, and darker areas are hydrocarbon "muck", similar to the dark dunes on Titan.



posted on Jul, 9 2015 @ 07:47 AM
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just wanted to Add a new pic of Pluto !!!!!!


WOW!!




posted on Jul, 9 2015 @ 08:05 AM
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And we'll be getting even more detail than that soon!



posted on Jul, 9 2015 @ 05:55 PM
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originally posted by: Kapusta
just wanted to Add a new pic of Pluto !!!!!!


WOW!!


Wow, that's a nice comparison between the Hubble and the NH view, especially considering that the Hubble only had a few pixels to work with.

~~~

NASA have just published a newer image, although it hasn't been added to the LORRI page yet: www.nasa.gov...



The detail is incredible, and will get better each day!

My enlarged and enhanced version:




posted on Jul, 9 2015 @ 06:48 PM
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a reply to: wildespace

Nice pics !!!

I am really excited to see it clearly !

I hope we get some good shots !

thank's for posting



posted on Jul, 10 2015 @ 08:31 AM
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a reply to: wildespace

That looks like a lip! not a crack, like Pluto is not perfectly round, kinda chunky


Also it looks like its moon and Pluto are completely different compositions.



posted on Jul, 10 2015 @ 05:51 PM
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originally posted by: zazzafrazz
a reply to: wildespace
Also it looks like its moon and Pluto are completely different compositions.

Pluto, due to owing stronger gravity and some atmosphere, gets precipitation of methane ice, giving it those bright patches of terrain. Charon, on the other hand, has the typical dark appearance that many other small outer Solar System bodies have, being covered in dark hydrocarbon/mineral coating that formed under cosmic and solar radiation.




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