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Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the Sun. It is the largest known trans-Neptunian object by volume, by a small margin, but is less massive than Eris.
Clyde William Tombaugh (/ ˈ t ɒ m b aʊ /; February 4, 1906 – January 17, 1997) was an American astronomer.He discovered Pluto in 1930, the first object to be discovered in what would later be identified as the Kuiper belt.
A Pluto orbiter/lander/sample return mission was proposed in 2003. The plan included a twelve-year trip from Earth to Pluto, mapping from orbit, multiple landings, a warm water probe, and possible in situ propellant production for another twelve-year trip back to Earth with samples. Power and propulsion would come from the bimodal MITEE nuclear ...
NASA just released the most complete look at Pluto that we've ever seen by stitching together recently-released photos. NASA's Pluto map is the most detailed look at the Dwarf Planet we've ever ...
The decision to name the object Pluto was intended in part to honour Percival Lowell, as his initials made up the word's first two letters. [30] After discovering Pluto, Tombaugh continued to search the ecliptic for other distant objects. He found hundreds of variable stars and asteroids, as well as two comets, but no further planets. [31]
Before New Horizons started sending back data and close-up images of Pluto, we barely knew the dwarf planet. We were like a love-sick fool who could only observe from afar. Now, the New Horizons ...
When it comes to landmark achievements in space exploration, today will be a date for the history books as the day humanity reached Pluto for the first time. If everything goes according to plan ...
The geology of Pluto consists of the characteristics of the surface, crust, and interior of Pluto. Because of Pluto's distance from Earth, in-depth study from Earth is difficult. Many details about Pluto remained unknown until 14 July 2015, when New Horizons flew through the Pluto system and began transmitting data back to Earth. [1]