Pluto's features glow in new false-color view of the dwarf planet

[n2doc]

BY MIRIAM KRAMER
15 hours ago
Pluto really pops in false color.

A new, huge map of the dwarf planet from NASA's New Horizons spacecraft shows the yellows, reds, blues and oranges of Pluto in incredible detail.

"Many landforms have their own distinct colors, telling a complex geological and climatological story that scientists have only just begun to decode. The image resolves details and colors on scales as small as 0.8 miles," NASA wrote online in an image description.

The new photo was taken on July 14, the day New Horizons made its closest approach with the small world, but was not fully downloaded and rendered until recently.

more
http://mashable.com/2015/09/24/pluto-color-variation-photo/#i9cr1dCsNEqI

Also



Pluto has a scaly surface.

A newly released image of the dwarf planet from the New Horizons spacecraft shows part of its surface has a strange looking, rippled topography.

“It’s a unique and perplexing landscape stretching over hundreds of miles,” William McKinnon, New Horizons scientist, said in a statement.

Scientists like McKinnon are trying to figure out what can account for the strange terrain. “It looks more like tree bark or dragon scales than geology. This'll really take time to figure out; maybe it’s some combination of internal tectonic forces and ice sublimation driven by Pluto’s faint sunlight.”

more
http://mashable.com/2015/09/24/pluto-dragon-scales-photo/#lu8EMP0RNqqP

[gvstn]

1. That second pic is wonderful!

And perplexing.

[lastlib]

2. We need to go there again.

Now. Start tomorrow morning. Send an orbiter this time, a la Cassini. And a lander. Bring back samples. Find out what makes this puppy tick!