Pluto found to be colder than it should be

Earth-bound astronomers taking Pluto's temperature have confirmed suspicions that the planet is colder than it should be. It's thought that the planet’s lower temperature is the result of interactions between its icy surface and thin nitrogen atmosphere.

Using the Submillimeter Array, or SMA, a network of radio telescopes located in Hawaii, astronomers found that Pluto’s average surface temperature was about 43 K (-382 degrees F) instead of the expected 53 K (-364 degrees F), which is what the temperature of Pluto’s largest moon, Charon, is.

Source: Space.com

I found this to be rather interesting.
Just go's to show that the planets in our solar system are more dynamic than we tend to think.


Comments, Opinions?

[edit on 1/3/2006 by iori_komei]

Originally posted by iori_komei

Just go's to show that the planets in our solar system are more dynamic than we tend to think.

Uh huh. And leads to the next obvious conclusion: The planet earth is more dynamic than we think.

...Wonder when people will catch on that you can't much around thoughtlessly with dynamic systems?

So, something is turning to gas, off the surface, and carrying away heat.
Betcha.