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The Year of Pluto - New Horizons Documentary Brings Humanity Closer to the Edge of the Solar System

NASA・46 minutes read

The New Horizons mission to Pluto began in 2006, with a focus on exploring the mysterious Zone in the solar system, leading to significant discoveries about Pluto's moons and characteristics. The mission, spearheaded by Alan Stern, aimed to answer key questions about Pluto and Charon's appearance, composition, and atmospheres, driving groundbreaking discoveries fueled by the potential for new insights into the solar system's history.

Insights

  • The New Horizons mission to Pluto, spearheaded by Alan Stern, marked a significant milestone in space exploration by revealing detailed information about Pluto's moons and the Kuiper Belt, offering insights into the solar system's history.
  • The mission's meticulous planning, rigorous testing, and innovative techniques, such as using Hubble to identify Kuiper Belt objects, showcased human skill, persistence, and dedication to achieving groundbreaking discoveries in the outer solar system.

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Recent questions

  • What is the New Horizons mission?

    The New Horizons mission is a NASA spacecraft mission to explore Pluto and the Kuiper Belt.

  • How was Pluto discovered?

    Pluto was discovered in 1930 by Clyde Tombaugh through meticulous observations.

  • What is the Kuiper Belt?

    The Kuiper Belt is a vast region beyond Neptune with various objects.

  • How does New Horizons study Pluto?

    New Horizons studies Pluto using advanced telescopes and instruments.

  • Who led the New Horizons mission?

    Alan Stern led the New Horizons mission to Pluto.

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Summary

00:00

Unveiling Pluto: NASA's New Horizons Mission

  • The mysterious Zone in the solar system is a region of ice worlds, some solitary and some with moons, holding clues to our origins.
  • The first world in this Zone is Pluto, part of the Kyper belt, reached by NASA's New Horizons Mission in 2015.
  • The mission began in 2006 with a light spacecraft aboard a large launch vehicle, a culmination of decades of planning and building.
  • The dream of reaching Pluto started with a 6-year-old boy in love with science, leading a team through perseverance.
  • New Horizons woke up from hibernation on December 6th, 2014, speeding towards Pluto for a close approach on July 14th, 2015.
  • Studying Pluto from Earth is challenging, requiring advanced telescopes and instrumentation, with the New Horizons mission marking a significant milestone.
  • Discoveries about Pluto's moons were made through meticulous observations and image processing, showcasing human skill and persistence.
  • Pluto's discovery in 1930 by Clyde Tomba involved tedious work with a blink comparator, leading to its confirmation as a new planet.
  • Pluto's characteristics, moons, and its place in the Kyper belt were revealed through observations, calculations, and discoveries over the years.
  • The Kyper belt, a vast region beyond Neptune, holds various objects like kbos, each with unique features and orbits, offering insights into the solar system's history.

16:54

"New Horizons: Passion Drives Pluto Mission Success"

  • Alan Stern, driven by passion and persistence, spearheaded the New Horizons space mission to Pluto.
  • In the '70s, young grad students, including Mik Allen, Mark Buoy, and Fran Bagenal, formed the Pluto underground group to advocate for a Pluto mission.
  • Despite numerous competing plans, the national Academy's decadal survey prioritized a Kyper belt Pluto mission, leading to the selection of New Horizons by NASA in 2001.
  • New Horizons aimed to explore Pluto and Charon, focusing on key questions about their appearance, composition, and atmospheres.
  • The spacecraft's seven science instruments, including the Long Range Imager LORRI and the Wide-Angle Camera Ralph, were designed to provide detailed data during the mission.
  • The spacecraft underwent rigorous testing and preparation, with a focus on launching in 2006 or 2007 to take advantage of Jupiter's position for the quickest route to Pluto.
  • New Horizons' launch in 2006 marked the beginning of its journey, with a slingshot gravity assist from Jupiter in 2007 reducing travel time to Pluto by three years.
  • A crucial encounter rehearsal in 2013 simulated the 2015 Pluto encounter, testing the spacecraft's performance and the team's readiness for the mission's critical phase.
  • The encounter day simulation in 2013, a minute-by-minute rehearsal, aimed to ensure flawless execution of planned activities during the actual Pluto encounter in 2015.
  • The anticipation and excitement surrounding the New Horizons mission to Pluto were fueled by the potential for groundbreaking discoveries, drawing parallels to past surprises at other celestial bodies like Triton and Enceladus.

33:37

"Pluto's Volcanoes and Organic Molecules Revealed"

  • Volcanoes in the Deep Freeze of the outer solar system are powered by forces such as radioactive decay inside rocks on icy planets like Triton and Pluto.
  • The heat generated from radioactive decay can melt ice and potentially create oceans beneath thick ice shells on these planets.
  • Over billions of years, the ice shell on Pluto thickens, squeezing the water underneath and potentially causing fractures that could lead to water jetting out to the surface.
  • Pluto's extreme seasons, caused by its eccentric orbit and polar tilt, result in highly contrasted surfaces and intense brightness and darkness.
  • The dark surface of Pluto collects heat, creating wind and potentially forming small dunes along its periphery.
  • Colors on Pluto's surface hint at the composition of its materials, with different colors indicating various chemical processes.
  • Lab experiments show that radiation can transform simple ices into complex organic molecules, similar to what may be happening on Pluto's surface.
  • New Horizons spacecraft exits hibernation for its journey to Pluto, with a unique mascot indicating its status.
  • New Horizons sends back the first images of Pluto, marking a significant milestone in the mission.
  • Precautions are taken to protect New Horizons from potential hazards like debris and dust particles as it approaches Pluto, with backup strategies in place to ensure the spacecraft's safety.

50:45

"New Horizons: Targeting Kuiper Belt Objects"

  • New Horizons mission planning involved identifying potential targets in the Kuiper Belt for a more distant flyby if NASA approved an extended mission, led by John Spencer, Mark Buie, and a team of young posts.
  • Earth's largest telescopes in Hawaii and Chile were insufficient for the task due to the Earth's atmosphere, leading to the use of Hubble to identify Kuiper Belt objects, with innovative search techniques developed by Mark Buie and collaborators.
  • The technique used to identify Kuiper Belt objects was a high-tech variant of an approach instrumental in exploring the Pluto system, involving comparing two pictures of the sky taken at different times to detect moving objects.
  • With potential targets found, New Horizons required precise orbit calculations to determine fuel needs for reaching the objects, leading to the realization that the spacecraft might need to burn engines to avoid collisions with the ancient, unchanged Kuiper Belt objects.
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