September 23, 2015

Pluto

Just 15 minutes after its closest approach to Pluto on July 14, 2015, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft looked back toward the sun and captured this near-sunset view of the rugged, icy mountains and flat ice plains extending to Pluto’s horizon.

The smooth expanse of the informally named icy plain Sputnik Planum (right) is flanked to the west (left) by rugged mountains up to 11,000 feet (3,500 meters) high, including the informally named Norgay Montes in the foreground and Hillary Montes on the skyline. To the right, east of Sputnik, rougher terrain is cut by apparent glaciers. The backlighting highlights more than a dozen layers of haze in Pluto’s tenuous but distended atmosphere. The image was taken from a distance of 11,000 miles (18,000 kilometers) to Pluto; the scene is 780 miles (1,250 kilometers) wide. Images From Offworld

plutoclosest.jpg

Posted by gerardvanderleun at September 23, 2015 6:41 PM
Bookmark and Share

Comments:

HOME

"It is impossible to speak in such a way that you cannot be misunderstood." -- Karl Popper N.B.: Comments are moderated and may not appear immediately. Comments that exceed the obscenity or stupidity limits will be either edited or expunged.

They set out for venus but ended up in uranus.

"I didn't say she was stupid, I said she's fucking Goofy!"

Posted by: ghostsniper at September 23, 2015 8:21 PM

Yup, Truman's decision to ignore the law against allowing known Nazi's into the US has certainly produced some pretty pictures.

Posted by: Bill Jones at September 23, 2015 10:19 PM

Great. Just great. We've got a mountain to celebrate the LBGT crowd and their contributions. We've got another to celebrate the illustrious contributions of our former Sec'y of State. C'mon NASA, you're failing in your primary mission: to help the Musselmans feel good about themselves and take pride in their indispensable contributions to human scientific achievement.

And really then, what's the point? We knew it was an ice-covered frozen rock before, it's still a frozen rock. There's been some inside heat that changed things around. All the best planets have that. Pluto's a planet dudes. Pluto's been this way since forever, it will be that way until Sol goes nova many billions of years from now. How does any of this help the Musselmans?

Bah, unless there's a photo of the effects produced by extrasolar visitors (bases, structures, bomb craters), we're no better off than we ever were. And the Musselmans still hate us cuz we in our hubris and bigotry won't check our white privilege and acknowledge and abase ourselves that we owe everything to them.

/sarc, vicious, for those who can't tell

Posted by: John A. Fleming at September 24, 2015 12:25 AM

Thanks Gerard,

Im glad Pluto is finally getting some street cred.

Btw.. The mountains arent named for political correctness..

Sir Edmund Hillary, Norgay was sortof like the uber-sherpa from Nepal, And sputnik is well... sputnik...

Adios

Posted by: Bill Henry at September 24, 2015 8:16 AM

Ahh .. sorry for the unnecessary correction John, my apologies. I saw the sarc reference right as I clicked post...

Posted by: Bill Henry at September 24, 2015 8:18 AM

You'd think with all the planets considered for habitation the space guys would choose something a bit closer and probably more habitable.
I say we consider a prison colony on the moon or Venus or Mars (ref: Heinlein's Moon is a Harsh Mistress).

Funds to subsidize the venture could be earned by mining the chosen planet;
Having a sort of homesteaders rush; whichever country gets there first stakes claims on areas.
Countries can unite, form a consortium; the only rule is: be able to defend what is claimed.

All the wretched refugees would be allowed, live up there.
Any malcontents or liberals would be allowed to set up a world that they think is correct.
All those prisoners on Death Row would be pardoned as per socialist values.

My uncle Letsgo Lozko had plans for huge chicken ranches; I suppose cattle would be alright too.

Posted by: chasmatic at September 26, 2015 7:11 AM