New Findings from NASA's New Horizons Probe on Pluto and Its Moon Charon

NASA scientists have obtained new findings about the structure of regions on the dwarf planet Pluto using data sent by the New Horizons probe. According to NDTV, scientists have published details of these findings in five papers that change their previous views about Pluto. The new findings indicate that Pluto has a diverse and active structure, a complex atmosphere, mysterious interactions with the sun, and an interesting and unconventional system of small moons. The New Horizons probe reached its closest distance to the dwarf planet Pluto on July 14, 2015, after a 9.5-year journey covering 4.8 billion kilometers. Pluto was previously recognized as a planet, but about 10 years ago, the International Astronomical Union referred to it as a 'dwarf planet.' According to NASA, the probe was able to collect about 50 gigabytes of data, much of which was obtained during 9 days of encounters with this dwarf planet. The probe has so far sent details about mountain ranges, flowing ice, smooth plains, and flat areas on Pluto. In this context, Reuters reported that images, chemical analyses, and other data indicate a complex and active geological structure with oceans and underground volcanoes that appear to be emitting ice. One scientist referred to Pluto as 'a geologically rebellious place.' Another scientist considers the diversity of regions to be 'astonishing.' How this structural diversity exists on Pluto with an average surface temperature of minus 229 degrees Celsius remains a mystery. Scientists attribute several factors to this, the most important being the evaporation of unstable ices including nitrogen, carbon monoxide, and methane into Pluto's cold and dense atmosphere. Although Pluto is smaller than Earth's moon, it is still likely that its internal heat has remained since the formation of this planet about 4.5 billion years ago, helping to maintain its prominent feature, the heart-shaped plain known as 'Sputnik Planum,' which is 1,000 kilometers wide. Describing the relatively young mountains in the west of Sputnik Planum and the different areas to the south is challenging. Scientists say both are located on ice masses, but how they formed on Pluto remains unknown. Pluto has five known moons, with 'Charon' being the largest, having a mass about one-eighth that of Pluto and a diameter nearly half that of this dwarf planet. Charon once had active geological life, but about 2 billion years ago, it froze due to the loss of radioactive heat from its core. Now, scientists believe that Charon and Pluto's other four moons owe their existence to a collision between Pluto and another celestial body of similar size during the early formation of the solar system.