NASA says Pluto's moon may once have had a subsurface ocean

Published February 19, 2016 1:03pm

&lt;/iframe&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; &lt;br /&gt; Photographs taken by NASA's nuclear-powered New Horizons spacecraft in July 2015 suggest that Pluto's moon Charon once had a subsurface ocean, NASA said on Thursday (February 19).&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; The space agency said the ocean would have long since frozen and expanded, pushing outward and causing the moon's surface to stretch and fracture.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; The New Horizons probe passed between the orbits of Pluto and its primary moon, Charon in July 2015, performing a series of carefully choreographed maneuvers to position its cameras and science instruments for hundreds of observations.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; The side of Pluto's largest moon viewed by the probe has a system of tectonic faults, including ridges more than four miles (6.5 km) deep.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; Scientists said the moon likely expanded in its past and its surface fractured as it stretched. The outer layer of Charon, which is primarily water ice, could have been warm enough to cause the ice to melt deep down, creating a subsurface ocean. But as the moon cooled over time, the ocean would have frozen and expanded, producing the chasms.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; The image was obtained by the Long-Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) on New Horizons and shows an area 240 miles (386 km) long and 110 miles (175 km) wide. It was taken about an hour and 40 minutes before New Horizons' closest approach to Charon on July 14, 2015. &lt;strong&gt;— Reuters&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Photographs taken by NASA's nuclear-powered New Horizons spacecraft in July 2015 suggest that Pluto's moon Charon once had a subsurface ocean, NASA said on Thursday (February 19).

The space agency said the ocean would have long since frozen and expanded, pushing outward and causing the moon's surface to stretch and fracture.

The New Horizons probe passed between the orbits of Pluto and its primary moon, Charon in July 2015, performing a series of carefully choreographed maneuvers to position its cameras and science instruments for hundreds of observations.

The side of Pluto's largest moon viewed by the probe has a system of tectonic faults, including ridges more than four miles (6.5 km) deep.

Scientists said the moon likely expanded in its past and its surface fractured as it stretched. The outer layer of Charon, which is primarily water ice, could have been warm enough to cause the ice to melt deep down, creating a subsurface ocean. But as the moon cooled over time, the ocean would have frozen and expanded, producing the chasms.

The image was obtained by the Long-Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) on New Horizons and shows an area 240 miles (386 km) long and 110 miles (175 km) wide. It was taken about an hour and 40 minutes before New Horizons' closest approach to Charon on July 14, 2015. — Reuters

Tags: spaceexploration, pluto, charon