More Evidence that Pluto Might Have a Subsurface Ocean

When NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft sailed past Pluto in 2015, it captured an image of the dwarf planet’s heart-shaped geography. But while it was there, New Horizons also caught a glimpse of Pluto’s dark side.

New Horizons Just Set a Record for Taking the Furthest Photographs Away From Earth

NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft is now 3.79 billion miles from Earth, or around 41 times the distance between the Earth and the Sun, and far beyond the orbit of Neptune. Using its Long Range Reconnaissance Imager, it snapped these images of Kuiper Belt Objects 2012 HZ84 (left) and 2012 HE85 (right)—and they’re the furthest images ever taken away from Earth.

Pluto Is Emitting X-Rays, and That’s Really Weird

Something very strange is going on around Pluto. The icy world that sits some 3.6 billion miles from the sun appears to be emitting x-rays—high energy radiation associated with gases with temperatures of a million degrees. That makes Pluto the furthest known x-ray source in our solar system. If confirmed, the finding could reshape our understanding of the dwarf planet’s atmosphere.

What’s the Fastest Spacecraft Ever?

For spacecraft that zoom through the cosmos at thousands of miles per hour, calculating which one is traveling the fastest is more complicated than simply clocking the first to cross a finish line.

Expect To See New Data From the Kuiper Belt in 2019

In 2015, NASA’s New Horizons mission made history when it captured the first detailed images of Pluto at the far edges of our solar system. Now, it’s set to go even further after the NASA mission received an official green light to extend its mission into 2019.

It Looks Like Pluto Has a Liquid Water Ocean

For a frigid little space rock at the ass-end of the solar system, Pluto is full surprises. Ice volcanoes, hazy skies, vast plains of churning nitrogen, what’s next? Just maybe, a subsurface ocean.

BEYOND PLUTO: MEET THE NEW HORIZONS SPACECRAFT’S NEXT TARGET

The Pluto flyby was arguably one of 2015’s top scientific achievements, maybe even one of the most memorable moments in the last decade. We now know what our ex-ninth planet looks like, and it’s spectacular. Pluto turned out to have some surprising features like glaciers, nitrogen lakes, ice volcanoes, and the list is growing. The New Horizons mission to Pluto has surpassed everyone’s expectations, and the good news is, the team has no plans of stopping yet. This summer, they’re hoping to win an extended mission to explore another strange new world.

Yuna – Castaway ft. Tyler, The Creator

Action Bronson – Mongolia ft. Hologram, Meyhem Lauren

KAYTRANADA – The Worst In Me ft. Tinashe

Future & Lil Uzi Vert – That’s It

H.E.R. – Damage

TOBE NWIGWE – EAT

A little bit of soul

This image of the Soul Nebula (IC 1848) combines 21.1 hours of exposures through Hydrogen-alpha, Oxygen-III, and Sulfur-II filters. This object resides in the constellation Cassiopeia the Queen.

Jellyfish in the ocean of space

Supernova remnant IC 443 has the common name the Jellyfish Nebula, and it lies at the top right of this image. The other, larger, nebula is IC 444. Both objects are in the constellation Gemini the Twins. Terry Hancock from Grand Mesa, Colorado

Seven sisters

The Pleiades (M45) is the most famous star cluster in the sky. It lies 444 light-years away in the constellation Taurus the Bull. The clouds of gas seen in this image are not connected to the stars, but are a dust cloud through which the cluster is passing. Dave Doctor from Las Cruces, New Mexico

Old friend

The Orion Nebula (M42) may be the most photographed deep-sky object of all. It’s a huge emission nebula and star-forming complex. In addition to the glowing hydrogen, however, the object also has regions of both reflection and dark nebulae. James Esch from Lovettsville, Virginia

Boom goes the star

The Cygnus Loop is a huge supernova remnant some 2,500 light-years away. It has many components, and this image shows two of them well. At the top is the Witch’s Broom (NGC 6960), and Pickering’s Triangle (which doesn’t have its own designation) lies down and to the lower left of the Broom. Naresh Singh from Saint Petersburg, Florida

Natural satellite