Astronomers have just completed another observation of New Horizons’ next flyby target, Ultima Thule (aka 2014 MU69), pass in front of a distant star (a stellar occultation), on Aug. 3-4, 2018. This is the third such occultation observed and the data gathered will help the mission …
Read MoreNew Horizons team successfully observes new stellar occultation of Ultima Thule
When New Horizons sped past Pluto and its moons in July 2015, it revealed some incredible new worlds to explore. They are no longer just very tiny dots of light in the sky, they are actual places, with diverse geological wonders. Now, for the first …
Read MoreMapping new worlds: Researchers release first global maps of Pluto and Charon
We all know how common sand dunes are on Earth – just go to practically any desert region to see them in their various shapes and sizes. Thanks to robotic space explorers, we also know they exist elsewhere in the Solar System, including Mars, Venus, …
NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft is way, way past Pluto now and still nearly a year away from its next encounter with an object in the Kuiper Belt, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t been busy. In fact, the probe just broke the record for the …
Read MoreRecord-breaking images from New Horizons are farthest ever taken from Earth
Happy New Year! As well as simply the start of a new year, today also marks another significant date – exactly one year from now, the New Horizons spacecraft will encounter its next target deep in the Kuiper Belt, much farther out than Pluto. On …
Read MorePluto and beyond: New Horizons’ next Kuiper Belt rendezvous only one year away
It has been nearly two-and-a-half years now since New Horizons sped past Pluto and its moons in July 2015, and now the spacecraft is starting to close in on its next target – another object in the Kuiper Belt called 2014 MU69. It lies a …
Read MoreAs New Horizons speeds toward next target, new data suggests 2014 MU69 may have a moon
Pluto is an intriguing little world, full of geological surprises, as New Horizons revealed back in 2015. This cold, remote body was expected to be pretty much inactive, but instead we saw a place with nitrogen ice “seas” and glaciers, tall mountains of water ice, …
Read More‘Penitentes on steroids’: Scientists solve enigma of Pluto’s massive ice blades