Pluto now found to have Larger atmosphere than previously thought

Well this explains Pluto's advantage, it wasn't Goofy!

Sorry, I just couldn't make a good atmospheric dog cartoon joke but believed there was one there. Like that Mars restaurant joke, great food but no atmosphere, well Pluto might have lousy food but...

I'm curious about updates from that New Horizons due to enter the Plutosphere in the next coupla years. Why the heck are they relying on Hubble photos when this mission is far closer? Is this thing taking pics or what? The updates on that mission are pretty inane, lacking, and hasn't enlightened us on anything. It cost a lot to send that out there - to only get about 1 update every 6 weeks....

Any insights to the NH mission? Thanks!

reply to post by chetinglendalevillage


hahha your post is funny New Horizons won't arrive to start taking pictures of Pluto until July 2015 sorry to bust your bubble; it will only be a fly-by too the mission doesn't have the fuel to slowdown for an orbital insertion. You can blame that on on NASAs low budget

reply to post by nataylor


I read a very interesting comment about the article on Space.com I want you to take a look NaTaylor

This statement here is puzzling and at the same time exiting:

"The atmosphere of Pluto was known to extend more than 60 miles (about 100 kilometers) above the surface, the researchers said, but the new findings raise that height to more than 1,860 miles (3,000 km) — equivalent to a quarter of the distance out to Pluto's largest moon, Charon."

This either means that the atmosphere is much denser on the surface of Pluto or Pluto has a strong magnetic field???

To find even trace amounts of carbon monoxide, CO, up to 1,860 miles above the surface is astonishing, as been suggested, earth's atmosphere extends about 100 miles. Because of Pluto's week gravitational field at about, 8 percent that of the earth's, to have a robust atmosphere similar to earths at the surface of Pluto the atmosphere would have to extend way out into space much farther than earths, like Pluto's may do if this is confirmed? Of course this may be a seasonal condition Pluto's atmosphere changes seasonally as it orbits the sun. Now the density of the air at the surface of Pluto can be more dense than the earth's simply because if it is said to be much colder on the surface of Pluto than it is on earth, density of air is dependent on the pressure and the temperature.

The other thought is did they measure CO trapped on Pluto's magnetic belt, remember the earth atmosphere extends out to about 100 miles, where particle count per cubic cm is very low, however just above that at 200 to 1,000 miles above the earth in the Van Allen belt there are more than 1,000 times more particles per cubic cm.

No matter what, if this new discovery is verified it is sure to surprise us on what we might find out once New Horizon finally gets to Pluto in 2015.This statement here is puzzling and at the same time exiting:

"The atmosphere of Pluto was known to extend more than 60 miles (about 100 kilometers) above the surface, the researchers said, but the new findings raise that height to more than 1,860 miles (3,000 km) — equivalent to a quarter of the distance out to Pluto's largest moon, Charon."

This either means that the atmosphere is much denser on the surface of Pluto or Pluto has a strong magnetic field???

To find even trace amounts of carbon monoxide, CO, up to 1,860 miles above the surface is astonishing, as been suggested, earth's atmosphere extends about 100 miles. Because of Pluto's week gravitational field at about, 8 percent that of the earth's, to have a robust atmosphere similar to earths at the surface of Pluto the atmosphere would have to extend way out into space much farther than earths, like Pluto's may do if this is confirmed? Of course this may be a seasonal condition Pluto's atmosphere changes seasonally as it orbits the sun. Now the density of the air at the surface of Pluto can be more dense than the earth's simply because if it is said to be much colder on the surface of Pluto than it is on earth, density of air is dependent on the pressure and the temperature.

The other thought is did they measure CO trapped on Pluto's magnetic belt, remember the earth atmosphere extends out to about 100 miles, where particle count per cubic cm is very low, however just above that at 200 to 1,000 miles above the earth in the Van Allen belt there are more than 1,000 times more particles per cubic cm.

No matter what, if this new discovery is verified it is sure to surprise us on what we might find out once New Horizon finally gets to Pluto in 2015.This statement here is puzzling and at the same time exiting:

"The atmosphere of Pluto was known to extend more than 60 miles (about 100 kilometers) above the surface, the researchers said, but the new findings raise that height to more than 1,860 miles (3,000 km) — equivalent to a quarter of the distance out to Pluto's largest moon, Charon."

This either means that the atmosphere is much denser on the surface of Pluto or Pluto has a strong magnetic field???

To find even trace amounts of carbon monoxide, CO, up to 1,860 miles above the surface is astonishing, as been suggested, earth's atmosphere extends about 100 miles. Because of Pluto's week gravitational field at about, 8 percent that of the earth's, to have a robust atmosphere similar to earths at the surface of Pluto the atmosphere would have to extend way out into space much farther than earths, like Pluto's may do if this is confirmed? Of course this may be a seasonal condition Pluto's atmosphere changes seasonally as it orbits the sun. Now the density of the air at the surface of Pluto can be more dense than the earth's simply because if it is said to be much colder on the surface of Pluto than it is on earth, density of air is dependent on the pressure and the temperature.

The other thought is did they measure CO trapped on Pluto's magnetic belt, remember the earth atmosphere extends out to about 100 miles, where particle count per cubic cm is very low, however just above that at 200 to 1,000 miles above the earth in the Van Allen belt there are more than 1,000 times more particles per cubic cm.

No matter what, if this new discovery is verified it is sure to surprise us on what we might find out once New Horizon finally gets to Pluto in 2015.

reply to post by chetinglendalevillage


All I know about the New Horizons mission is it will sadly be just a flyby (I think), and will not set into orbit around Pluto for extensive photo data/mapping. But we got massive photo data from the Voyagers, so it could be spectacular. The Voyagers never orbited a planet, they got slingshots from them. It still should have a couple of months of data collection at much better data sensitive and transmitting capacity as the Voyagers.

reply to post by Illustronic


Yes Illustronic i believe the mission will last for about 2 months before it will be out of range to take visual Data (Pictures). Thank you for your contributions . Keep this thread alive

Felt compelled to give a shout to Pluto considering my ATS signature...
"It's okay Pluto, I'm not a planet either..."


***BRING BACK PLANET PLUTO!!!***
it's a conspiracy!!!!!!!!!!

reply to post by XRaDiiX


I didn't see your reply while I was posting my comment, I thought I was answering the guy, I must have left the computer for a while or something. I didn't think the Pluto and Goofy joke would go anywhere either, Pluto is from a different era, even before me.

I'm still very excited to see what Pluto really looks like, and its moon Charon, we might get some really cool perspectives if New Horizons is fortunate enough to fly by Charon on its approach. I'm also interested to get some info on Pluto's other two dwarf moons.

This is truly something only NASA would do! Unless Carl Sagan was alive and a multi-billionaire, because there really is no intrinsic benefit other than 'space exploration'.

We may find out that there is evidence the moons of Pluto were created like our own large moon, from a collision. Collisions in our early solar system is the belief that gives the astronomy community plausible answers to some of the peculiar anomalies we see right here; like Uranus's axial tilt, is Venus upside down or right side up spinning backwards, is Triton a captured satellite, Where did Pluto get such a large moon comparatively, like ours? Phil Plait has a couple of thoughts about the origin of the Pluto moon system.

blogs.discovermagazine.com...

reply to post by Illustronic


Yes I've heard of and been to his site a few times before he was famous... Thank you for helping to keep this thread alive i find it fascinating. There was also talk of A possible atmosphere sort of bridge between Charon and Pluto Since they are so close...

I found this interesting in the comments to Phil's blog;

9. nancy Says:
January 4th, 2006 at 6:48 am
Stick says “So how much is this mission costing?

The cost of the mission, including the launch vehicle and operations through the Pluto-Charon encounter, will be roughly $650 million. Divided among the population of the United States (according to the U.S. Census clock at www.census.gov...) over the 10-year duration of the mission, this comes out to about 20 cents per person, per year.

reply to post by Illustronic


Thank-you seems like a low amount of money to finally explore the far outer solar system (dwarf)planets Pluto, Its moons. They are still deciding which other outer planet to visit as well but i think its Eros

reply to post by XRaDiiX


New Horizons definitely won't be visiting Eris. After the Pluto flyby, any Kuiper Belt Objects it visits have to be within 1 degree of the spacecraft's flight path, due to the limited fuel it will have. Also, the objects must be no further out than 55 AU, as radio communication wil be too degraded by then. Eris will be nearly on the other side of the solar system, so it's not a potential target:


Positions as of March 15, 2015.

reply to post by XRaDiiX


Yes, made for TV attention span must include a shock value, hence, the explosions make Phil seem like another a run of the mill sci fi idiot. I never saw his show, (I saw a trailer), but read about his first episode on the JREF forums. I also think Discovery turning his website into a 'blog' kind of devalues his insights, but there is money to be made, just ask Michio Kaku!

reply to post by Illustronic


Money makes the world go Round


reply to post by nataylor


Thank you i thought someone told me it was Eris. They did say they might try and get the spacecraft to visit an Kuiper belt Object though