New Horizons Spots Possible Polar Cap on Pluto

As NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft hurries toward its epic rendezvous with dwarf planet Pluto, the little world is coming into focus a bit more quickly than expected. Today, thanks to some image processing wizardry, new images from New Horizons are already revealing some of the features marking the dwarf planet’s surface, including a possible polar cap.

“We’re actually pulling out details about a month in advance of where we thought we’d be,” said New Horizons project scientist Hal Weaver of the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab. “By the time we get to the closest approach to Pluto, it’s going to blow us all away.”

That’ll happen on July 14, when New Horizons is scheduled to fly within 12,500 kilometers of Pluto.

For now, from about

DON'T MISS THE REST OF THIS STORY!
Create a free account to continue and get unlimited access to hundreds of Nat Geo articles, plus newsletters.

Create your free account to continue reading

No credit card required. Unlimited access to free content.
Or get a Premium Subscription to access the best of Nat Geo - just $19
SUBSCRIBE

Go Further

Subscriber Exclusive Content

Why are people so dang obsessed with Mars?

How viruses shape our world

The era of greyhound racing in the U.S. is coming to an end

See how people have imagined life on Mars through history

See how NASA’s new Mars rover will explore the red planet

Why are people so dang obsessed with Mars?

How viruses shape our world

The era of greyhound racing in the U.S. is coming to an end

See how people have imagined life on Mars through history

See how NASA’s new Mars rover will explore the red planet

Why are people so dang obsessed with Mars?

How viruses shape our world

The era of greyhound racing in the U.S. is coming to an end

See how people have imagined life on Mars through history

See how NASA’s new Mars rover will explore the red planet