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Pluto is an icy body, the most prominent object in the solar system's Kuiper belt. ... [16] [17] The temperature cycle near the equator (in the diurnal zone) ...
The presence of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, in Pluto's atmosphere creates a temperature inversion, with the average temperature of its atmosphere tens of degrees warmer than its surface, [142] though observations by New Horizons have revealed Pluto's upper atmosphere to be far colder than expected (70 K, as opposed to about 100 K). [137]
The temperature on the surface is 40 to 60 K (−230 to −210 °C), [6] but it quickly rises with altitude due to a methane-generated greenhouse effect. Near the altitude of 30 km it reaches 110 K (−163 °C), where it then slowly decreases afterwards with height. [7] Pluto is the only trans-Neptunian object with a known atmosphere. [7]
The atmosphere of Pluto was discovered in 1988, but it remained enigmatic and it was hard to understand an atmosphere existing in such low temperatures (45 K, −230 °C, −380 °F). [3] One of the ideas about Pluto is atmospheric loss, with Pluto being compared to losses from comets.
At Pluto's ambient temperature of 38 K (−235.2 °C; −391.3 °F), nitrogen and carbon monoxide ices are denser and much less rigid than water ice, making glacial-like flows possible; nitrogen ice is the most volatile. [5] The nitrogen ice of the basin rests on Pluto's crust mostly composed of much more rigid water ice. [14]
Pluto needs 248 years for one complete orbit, and has been observed for less than one third of that time. It has an average distance of 39 AU from the Sun, hence in-depth data from Pluto is sparse and difficult to gather. Temperature is inferred indirectly for Pluto; when it passes in front of a star, observers note how fast the light drops off.
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The instruments are to be used to investigate the global geology, surface composition, surface temperature, atmospheric pressure, atmospheric temperature and escape rate of Pluto and its moons. The rated power is 21 watts, though not all instruments operate simultaneously. [69]