Image Of Pluto’s Surface Backlit By The Sun Stuns Even The Experts
- 9 years ago
New Horizons continues to send images taken during its near flyby of Pluto back to Earth, and one of the more recent ones has stunned even the experts.
NASA's New Horizons spacecraft continues to send images taken during its flyby of Pluto back to Earth, and one of the more recent ones has stunned even the experts.
In the photo, a 780-mile wide expanse of land on Pluto’s crescent is backlit by the sun.
The lighting emphasizes the incredible diversity existing in the dwarf planet’s terrain while also revealing quite a bit about its atmosphere.
More than a dozen layers of haze can be seen, and they extend far above the icy surface.
The highest is estimated to be about 60 miles above ground.
New Horizons Composition team leader Will Grundy
NASA's New Horizons spacecraft continues to send images taken during its flyby of Pluto back to Earth, and one of the more recent ones has stunned even the experts.
In the photo, a 780-mile wide expanse of land on Pluto’s crescent is backlit by the sun.
The lighting emphasizes the incredible diversity existing in the dwarf planet’s terrain while also revealing quite a bit about its atmosphere.
More than a dozen layers of haze can be seen, and they extend far above the icy surface.
The highest is estimated to be about 60 miles above ground.
New Horizons Composition team leader Will Grundy