Tag: mu69

Why does Arrokoth look like a snowman?

Meet Arrokoth – the most distant object yet visited by earthlings – seen by the New Horizons spacecraft in early 2019. It’s very old, one of the first generation of objects in our solar system. Here’s why it looks like a snowman. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/arrokoth-nowman-peanut-shape-new-horizons-distant-object…

Ultima Thule renamed to avoid Nazi link

The distant Kuiper Belt object formerly known as 2014 MU69 – later known as Ultima Thule – has been renamed again. Its new name is Arrokoth. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/ultima-thule-renamed-to-avoid-nazi-link…

NASA studies plan to send an orbiter to Pluto

Remember when New Horizons swept past Pluto in 2015? That was exciting! Who knew Pluto had a heart? Now scientists are proposing a new Pluto orbiter mission. It would gather details on Pluto’s heart and the rest of its youthful surface, its hazy bluish nitrogen atmosphere, and its system of 5 known moons. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/nasa-studies-plan-to-send-an-orbiter-to-pluto…

IAU approves 2nd round of names for Pluto features

New Horizons provided what will be the only close-up images of Pluto many of us will see in our lifetimes. The new feature names from the International Astronomical Union recognize the mission’s forerunners in Earth and space mythology and history. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/iau-approves-new-pluto-feature-names-2019…

Today in 2015: New Horizons at Pluto

The small, fast-moving New Horizons spacecraft is likely to be the only Pluto mission in the lifetimes of many of us. It changed forever the way we on Earth perceive this outermost world and its moons. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/july-4-2015-new-horizons-at-pluto…