New Horizons, Only 100 days from Pluto.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

It is tempting to speculate about the features, but I think I will wait until the probe gets even closer. Two more days to go!

[barkis]

Will the probes cameras get a look back as it speeds past the Planet,  little guy?

I'm sure it will have the means to turn 180 degrees or so, but whether that will be 

pre determined Manoeuvre  or as a result of a transmitted signal is not certain, if any at all.

I would imagine the former will have been programmed if they want to look back as it recedes.

Ron.

[RLWP]

Looks like liquid flowing from the dark equatorial features (lakes?) towards the semi-circular, crater type features.

Or is it the other way round?

One thing looks certain, we will have more questions about Pluto after the flypast than ever before!

Maybe it suffers distortion because of the close orbit of Charon

Richard

[DaveS]

One thing looks certain, we will have more questions about Pluto after the flypast than ever before!

Which means we'll just have to send another one pronto   !

[impactcrater]

NASA's "Eyes On The Solar System' has an 'Eyes On Pluto' which shows the complex dance that New Horizons does as it approaches and leaves the Pluto System...it is amazing !

[Piero]

Other details for Pluto:

and Charon alone: 

[RLWP]

BBC News did a suitably bonkers bit on New Horizons last night, involving a presenter wandering through a CGi clockwork solar system in a studio. Very pretty and rather surreal at the same time.

I did absorb something new though - New Horizons mission includes exploring the Kuiper belt. I wasn't aware of this, sounds like there's going to be a lot more interesting stuff to come after Pluto

Richard

[philj]

Exciting times. Im watching this flyby with interest. This is history in the making again. 

It seems quite commonplace these days to see images of objects millions of miles away which only a few decades ago we knew next to nothing about. Its worth thinking about the accomplishments that these images represent.

The images today are fascinating, large filled craterlike areas showing nicely and remarkable albedo differences between pluto and charon.

[DRT]

New Horizons mission includes exploring the Kuiper belt.

I didn't know that, Richard, and assumed it would just hurtle off into space with nothing more to see after passing Pluto.

The NASA mission page says this: "As part of an extended mission, the spacecraft is expected to head farther into the Kuiper Belt to examine one or two of the ancient, icy mini-worlds in that vast region, at least a billion miles beyond Neptune’s orbit."

I wonder if they have already selected their targets?

[Blazar]

Getting exciting...also nice to know that Clyde Tombaugh's ashes (well on ounce of them) are flying on the probe...and he will be only 7800 miles from the planet he discovered.

[andrew63]

In some ways this marks the end of the great classical solar system exploration by probes since the 1960's - and what an epic journey it has been.

andrew

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

In some ways this marks the end of the great classical solar system exploration by probes since the 1960's - and what an epic journey it has been.

andrew

Precisely. I feel privileged to have lived through all of that exciting era

[Scott]

Pluto will most certainly be the pinnacle of this expedition, but I must say I'm really looking forward to the kuiper belt stage. Growing up as a small kid (yes, I was small once) pluto was kinda "it" as far as the solar system was concerned. Didn't even know there was a kuiper belt back then (me that is) or perhaps I just wasn't interesrted, so I think its pretty cool that in my lifetime (hopefully ) I'll get to see pics  from inside it.... 

Sorry, just my musings

[Physopto]

Not sure if anyone has read this, it is a page direct from the NASA PDS

websiteInvestigation Information

IDENTIFIER urn:nasa:pds:context:investigation:mission.new_horizons::1.0 

NAME NEW HORIZONS

TYPE Mission

DESCRIPTION This material has been adapted from the New Horizons web site.

  Mission Overview

  ================

    The primary science goals of the NEW HORIZONS mission are to

    characterize the global geology and morphology of Pluto and Charon, to

    map the surface composition of Pluto and Charon, and to characterize

    the neutral atmosphere of Pluto and its escape rate (NASA AO, 2001

    [NASAAO2001]; Stern & Spencer, 2004 [sTERN&SPENCER2004A]).

  Mission Design

  ==============

    The New Horizons spacecraft trajectory was designed to have as early

    an arrival time at Pluto as practicable.

    There are two reasons why the New Horizons science team wants to reach

    Pluto and Charon quickly. The first has to do with the Pluto

    atmosphere: Since 1989, Pluto has been moving farther from the Sun,

    getting less heat every year. As Pluto gets colder scientists expect

    its atmosphere will freeze out, so the team wants to arrive while

    there is a chance to see a thicker atmosphere.

    The second reason is to map as much of Pluto and Charon as possible.

    As New Horizons approaches and flies by the Pluto system, parts of

    Pluto or Charon will be in constant darkness, and, the later the

    flyby, the more of Pluto and Charon that will be unlit.

    Prime Opportunity:  Jupiter

    ---------------------------

      By launching in January 2006, New Horizons took advantage of a

      gravity assist from Jupiter. In February 2007, New Horizons passed

      through the Jupiter system at 50,000 mph, ending up on a path that

      gets it to Pluto on July 14, 2015.

      Science Opportunities at Jupiter included meteorology, aurora

      studies, magnetospheric sampling, and dust sampling and ultraviolet

      mapping of the torus around Io. Surface mapping, compositional

      mapping and atmospheric studies of the Jupiters moons are possible,

      as is a close encounter with a small Jovian satellite.

      During the cruise from Jupiter to Pluto, the mission team will

      monitor the health of the spacecraft while planning and practicing

      for the encounter with Pluto and Charon. At the same time, observers

      can use telescopes on Earth to search for Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs)

      the spacecraft can fly by after Pluto and Charon (as part of an

      extended mission). The KBOs are ancient, icy bodies that orbit

      beyond Neptune.

    Closing In:  Pluto

    ------------------

      The cameras on New Horizons will start taking data on Pluto and

      Charon months before the spacecraft arrives. Pluto and Charon will

      first appear as unresolved bright dots, but the planet and its moon

      appear larger as the encounter date approaches. About three months

      from the closest approach - when Pluto and Charon are about 105

      million kilometers away - the cameras on the spacecraft can make the

      first maps. For those three months, the mission team will take

      pictures and spectral measurements.

      Pluto and Charon each rotate once every 6.4 Earth days. For the last

      two Pluto days before encounter (11 to 12 Earth days), the team will

      compile maps and gather spectra measurements of Pluto and Charon

      every half-day. The team can then compare these maps to check

      changes over a Pluto day, at a scale of about 48 kilometers, as

      might be caused by new snows or other weather.

    The Encounter

    -------------

      The busiest part of the Pluto-Charon flyby will last a full Earth

      day, from a half-day before closest approach to a half-day after. On

      the way in, the spacecraft will look for ultraviolet emission from

      the Pluto atmosphere and make the best global maps of Pluto and

      Charon in green, blue, red and a special wavelength detector that is

      sensitive to methane frost on the surface. It will also take

      spectral maps in the near infrared, telling the science team about

      the Pluto and Charon surface compositions and locations and

      temperatures of these materials.

      In current mission designs, the spacecraft comes as close as about

      9,600 kilometers from Pluto and about 27,000 kilometers from Charon.

      During the half-hour when the spacecraft is closest to Pluto or its

      largest moon, it will take close-up pictures in both visible and

      near-infrared wavelengths. The best pictures of Pluto will depict

      surface features as small as about 60 meters across.

      Even after the spacecraft passes Pluto and its moons, its work is

      far from done. Looking back at the mostly dark side of Pluto or

      Charon is the best way to spot haze in the atmosphere, to look for

      rings, and to figure out whether their surfaces are smooth or rough.

      Also, the spacecraft will fly through the shadows cast by Pluto and

      Charon. It can look back at the Sun and Earth, and watch the light

      from the Sun or the radio waves from transmitters on Earth.  The

      best time to measure the atmosphere happens as the spacecraft

      watches the Sun and Earth set behind Pluto and Charon.

                Launch:  January 19, 2006

        Launch Vehicle:  Atlas V 551 first stage; Centaur second stage;

                         STAR 48B solid rocket third stage

              Location:  Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

            Trajectory:  To Pluto via Jupiter Gravity Assist

  Mission Phases

  ==============

    Summary of mission phases

    -------------------------

      Name          Start(1)    Stop(2)     Description

      LAUNCH        2006-01-19  2006-12-31  Post-launch checkout

      JUPITER       2007-01-01  2007-06-26  Jupiter encounter

      CRUISE1       2007-06-27  2014-12-31  Jupiter-Pluto/Charon

                                              interplanetary cruise

      PLUTO_CHARON  2015-01-01  2016-04-30  Pluto/Charon approach,

                                              flyby, post-encounter

      Notes:

      1 Start at 00:00:00 that day

      2 End before 00:00:00 next day

    The Voyage

    ----------

      Early Cruise:

        Formal data set name:  LAUNCH

        Mission Phase Start Time - 2006-01-19

        Mission Phase Stop Time  - 2006-12-31

      The first 13 months include spacecraft and instrument checkouts,

      instrument calibrations, trajectory correction maneuvers, and

      rehearsals for the Jupiter encounter.

      Jupiter Encounter:

        Formal data set name:  JUPITER

        Mission Phase Start Time - 2007-01-01

        Mission Phase Stop Time  - 2007-06-26

      Closest approach occurred on Feb. 28, 2007. Moving about 21

      kilometers per second, New Horizons flew 3 to 4 times closer to

      Jupiter than the Cassini spacecraft, coming within 32 Jupiter radii

      of Jupiter.

      Interplanetary Cruise:

        Formal data set name:  CRUISE1

        Mission Phase Start Time - 2007-06-27

        Mission Phase Stop Time  - 2014-12-31

      Activities during the approximately 8-year cruise to Pluto include

      annual spacecraft and instrument checkouts, trajectory corrections,

      instrument calibrations and Pluto encounter rehearsals.

    Pluto-Charon Encounter

    ----------------------

        Formal data set name:  PLUTO_CHARON

        Mission Phase Start Time - 2015-01-01

        Mission Phase Stop Time  - 2016-04-30

      This phase will be broken down into three sub-phases:

        Approach:

          Mission Sub-phase Start Time - 2015-01-01

          Mission Sub-phase Stop Time  - 2015-07-14

        Ten weeks before encounter, image resolution will exceed that of

        the best Hubble Space Telescope images.  Four weeks before

        encounter, daily studies will begin.  New Horizon will acquire

        maps and spectra throughout this period.

        Flyby:

          Mission Sub-phase Start Time - 2015-07-14

          Mission Sub-phase Stop Time  - 2015-07-14

        Activities include taking the highest resolution visible and

        spectral imaging at closest approach to Pluto and Charon.  The

        time near occultations (Pluto/Sun, Pluto/Earth, Charon/Sun and

        Charon/Earth) will be used for atmospheric studies.

        Post-Encounter:

          Mission Sub-phase Start Time - 2015-07-14

          Mission Sub-phase Stop Time  - 2016-04-30

      Four weeks of post-encounter studies and nine months of downloading

      data.

START DATE 2006-01-19T12:00:00.000Z

STOP DATE 3000-01-01T12:00:00.000Z

REFERENCES NASA, Pluto Kuiper Belt Mission Announcement of Opportunity. AO 01-OSS-01, 2001.

Stern, A., and J. Spencer, New Horizons: The first reconnaissance mission to bodies in the Kuiper Belt, Proceedings of the First Decadal Review of the Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt, A. Davies Ed., ISBN 1-4020-1781-2, reprinted from Earth Moon and Planets 92, 2004.

[impactcrater]

I know that the geography of Pluto will be officially named ...I wonder what theme the SGL members would use to name its features. Perhaps with its underworld connections a "Dracula " theme would be good.....or even "The Rocky Horror Show"..."Brad and Janet Hills", "Frankenstein Gully" , "Sucked Dry Valley" and "Blood-shot eye Crater"...

[Scott]

I know that the geography of Pluto will be officially named ...I wonder what theme the SGL members would use to name its features. Perhaps with its underworld connections a "Dracula " theme would be good.....or even "The Rocky Horror Show"..."Brad and Janet Hills", "Frankenstein Gully" , "Sucked Dry Valley" and "Blood-shot eye Crater"...

wouldn't that be frankenfurter gully?

[symesie04]

Surely given its name it would have to have a Disney theme? Perhaps any jagged rocky areas could be referred to as "the goofies"  And there is a whole world of characters to name other features.

[Knight of Clear Skies]

I know that the geography of Pluto will be officially named ...I wonder what theme the SGL members would use to name its features. Perhaps with its underworld connections a "Dracula " theme would be good.....or even "The Rocky Horror Show"..."Brad and Janet Hills", "Frankenstein Gully" , "Sucked Dry Valley" and "Blood-shot eye Crater"...

I was intrigued by this, a quick search threw up this link about the proposed names for features on Pluto. It includes explorers, mythological and fictional characters, scientists and space missions. Here's the full list that has been submitted to the IAU.

I predict that the largest feature will be appropriately named Tombaugh, and if they can find anything that looks like a canal they should call it Lowell in a backhanded recognition of his contribution to astronomy. Also on the list are Cthulhu, Kirk, Mordor and Douglas Adams.

[DRT]

I predict that the largest feature will be appropriately named Tombaugh

Tombaugh's Heart would be a nice touch

[barkis]

We need an Elmer J. Fudd Crater  for sure,  Brim full of Wabbits   .

Ron.

[DaveS]

In the "Legendary serpents and dragons" section I was surprised to see no mention of either Nidhogg or Jormundgand from Norse mythology or Tiamat from Sumerian.

[symesie04]

Maybe as Pluto is no longer a fully fledged planet it may have to be content with its features being named after celebrities that also dont make the grade. The Jordan Hills, Andre's Basin, the Kardashian Crack that sort of thing. Think of all the current bun and celeb mag readers that would suddenly take an interest. "OMG they have named places on Pluto after TOWIES! I must go and visit, is it anywhere near Billericay?"

[DRT]

Back on topic...

...another great image, this time of Charon

http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/News-Center/News-Article.php?page=20150712-2

Fascinating stuff.

[davedownsouth]

Back on topic...

...another great image, this time of Charon

Charon Annotated 7-12-15.jpg

http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/News-Center/News-Article.php?page=20150712-2

Fascinating stuff.

I am surprised you still get polar regions that far from the Sun

[Laurie61]

Some NASA TV coverage details - All times EDT so add 5hrs for UK.

Tuesday, July 14

7:30 to 8 a.m. – Arrival at Pluto Countdown Program; live on NASA TV

At approximately 7:49 a.m., New Horizons is scheduled to be as close as the spacecraft will get to Pluto, approximately 7,800 miles (12,500 kilometers) above the surface, after a journey of more than nine years and three billion miles. For much of the day, New Horizons will be out of communication with mission control as it gathers data about Pluto and its moons.

The moment of closest approach will be marked during the live NASA TV broadcast that includes a countdown and discussion of what’s expected next as New Horizons makes its way past Pluto and potentially dangerous debris.

8 to 9 a.m. – Media briefing, image release; live on NASA TV

Noon to 3 p.m. – Panel Discussions (no NASA TV coverage)

New Horizons mission overview and history

Pluto system discoveries on approach

Mariner 4 and Pluto: 50 years to the day

8:30 to 9:15 p.m. – NASA TV program, Phone Home, broadcast from APL Mission Control

NASA TV will share the suspenseful moments of this historic event with the public and museums around the world. The New Horizons spacecraft will send a preprogrammed signal after the closest approach. The mission team on Earth should receive the signal by about 9:02 p.m. When New Horizons “phones home,” there will be a celebration of its successful flyby and the anticipation of data to come in the days and months ahead. 

9:30 to 10 p.m. – Media Briefing: New Horizons Health and Mission Status; live on NASA TV

Wednesday, July 15

Noon to 3 p.m. – Interview Opportunities (no NASA TV coverage)

Informal group briefings and availability for one-on-one interviews. An updated schedule will be posted in the New Horizons Media Center. Media may call into the media center for phone interviews during newsroom hours.

3 to 4 p.m. – Media Briefing: Seeing Pluto in a New Light; live on NASA TV

Release of close-up images of Pluto’s surface and moons, along with initial science team reactions.

https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-announces-updated-television-coverage-media-activities-for-pluto