New Horizons: Near Encounter Phase Options

[Guest_alex_k_*]

My processing of 11 of July, 22:22. Factor x3, north is up.

Pluto:


Charon:

[volcanopele]

I had completely forgotten about the observation playbook! In that case, I can update my P_LORRI_STEREO_MOSAIC preview to show which frames will be played back this month (using the colors Emily used in her graphic earlier). So the Yellow frames are supposed to be played back Wednesday evening UTC, while the purple frames are supposed to be played back on the afternoon of July 20 UTC.



Blake, maybe you're confusing radius and diameter? Diameter = Radius x 2

[Phil Stooke]

Just playing with contrast in the brighter areas of Pluto and the terminators to make details easier to see.

Phil

[alk3997]

These two sources don't seem to match up. The article linked above states:

and


EDIT: TheAnt just said the same thing.

1185km radius x 2 = 2370km diameter

I guess I'm missing what doesn't "add up"?

Andy

[nprev]

[attachment=36814:Pluto_Ch..._release.jpg]

Astonishing detail on Pluto now, including apparent topography. There seem to be two distinct types of dark terrain. The part facing the camera looks like rugged highlands, but the part rotating into view at 7 o'clock looks flat, featureless, and much darker.

[JRehling]

To my eye, the dark blotches on the Whale hemisphere seem to have smoothly curving boundaries, while the dark areas on the anti-Whale hemisphere seem to have more irregular boundaries. I'm curious now if that's because they're categorically different or if it's the same materials but differences in topography. (Such as the difference between the jagged coastline of Greece vs. the smooth coastlines of Florida.)

[Gladstoner]

Much more details here! This looks like giant dark sand dunes.

The same thought occurred to me, but surely those couldn't be dunes....

The prominent 'crater' and a couple other crater-like features look like impact craters that have been etched or 'deconstructed'. Come to think of it, the entire landscape along the lower latitudes appear to be heavily modified in such a manner. It is possible the highly-volatile ices were somehow driven off in these latitudes (leaving behind water ice 'residue'), while remaining intact in the higher latitudes?

[OWW]

Much more details here! This looks like giant dark sand dunes.

Those grey splotches do look like dunes. We need more pictures to be sure.

[JRehling]

Astonishing detail on Pluto now, including apparent topography. There seem to be two distinct types of dark terrain. The part facing the camera looks like rugged highlands, but the part rotating into view at 7 o'clock looks flat, featureless, and much darker.

This is a good observation. I bet when we see some color here, the two kinds of dark terrain end up being not quite the same color. Black and white can hide quite a bit of meaningful differences.

[mchan]

The vaguely hexagonal feature above the bullseye appears even more crater-like now at the limb.

[Marvin]

That must be a crater on Charon at the 5 o'clock position. You can even see radial impact ejecta.

The crater on Pluto at the 4 o'clock doesn't show ejecta.

Pluto_Charon

If they are dunes on Pluto, what would cause them and what would they be made of?

[OWW]

That must be a crater on Charon at the 5 o'clock position. You can even see radial impact ejecta.

Two craters actually. There's a smaller one to the right. But where are all the big impact basins? Charon is remarkably smooth.

[Guest_Steve5304_*]

still seeing evidence of fluid having flowed across the surface in the far gone past but we need closer pictures

[alan]

The dark center and bright ejecta around the 'crater' on Charon reminds me of the craters on some of Uranus's moons.

[blake]

Blake, maybe you're confusing radius and diameter?

You're absolutely right.