Pluto and his piped moon
New observations of the Webb telescope reveal that Pluto’s atmosphere is completely different from that of other planets.
When the New Horizons spacecraft passed Pluto and Charte in 2015, it revealed two incredibly complex worlds and an active atmosphere in Pluto. These instantaneous redefined our understanding of the system.
Now new observations with the James Webb (JWST) space telescope, made in 2022 and 2023, show that Pluto’s atmosphere is completely different from any other in the solar system. For starters, it contains fog particles that climb and descend as they are heated and cooled.
Pluto’s atmosphere is a complicated nNitrogen, methane and carbon monoxide ies. Based on JWST data, fog particles control the atmosphere’s energy balance as they heat and cool. This is very unusual and has never been seen in other worlds of the solar system.
The observations were inspired by an idea that astronomer XI Zhang (University of California – Santa Cruz) proposed in 2017. “It was a crazy idea”, said Zhang. However, he and the co-authors of the article feel confident enough to predict that if a fog is cooling Pluto, it must be emitting a strong average infrared radiation. If so, then an infrared telescope should be able to “see” the phenomenon.
Inspired by this forecast, an astronome team led by Tanguy Bertrand of the Paris Observatory used JWST to study Fog control in Pluto’s atmospheric heat balance. “We were very proud because it confirmed our forecast,” said Zhang. “In planetary science, it is not common to have a confirmed hypothesis so quickly, in just a few years. So we are very lucky and very enthusiastic.”
Pluto, Chalon and his atmospheres
Pluto’s atmosphere is a chemically rich nitrogen, methane and carbon monoxide mixture. In contrast, Carante does not have an appreciable atmosphere, although it can record seasonal wear.
The mist we see in Pluto in the images and data of the New Horizons passage is an active experience in photochemistry of nitrogen and methane. In this respect, it is similar to the fogs we see in Titan.
JWST remarks of Pluto and Chair made in 2022 focused on the Miri instrument on the fogs and the atmosphere of Pluto. It also made measurements to 18, 21 and 25 microns in both worlds.
In 2023, Miri returned to his attention to Pluto and provided atmospheric and fog data in the range of the average infrared (4.9 – 27 microns).
The results revealed Variations in thermal surface radiation – Temperature changes – Both in Pluto and Caronte during its rotation. Researchers were able to put strong restrictions on thermal inertia, emissivity and temperature of different regions of Pluto and Charte. These properties are what drives global ice distribution in Pluto and pushes Pluto’s material to Chair.
Seasonal cycles of surface volatile ice distribute lead to a migration of ice deposits through the surface of Pluto. It is almost as if several ice deposits are “caught” and redistributed from other locations. Some of this material is also pulled completely away from Pluto and deposited in Charte. As much as scientists know, this is not any other place in the solar system.
Temperatures
The new data show that Pluto’s atmosphere is unique among the planetary atmospheres of the solar system. Yours radiative energy balance – That is, the balance between sunlight that enters and heat loss to space – is mainly controlled by fog particles instead of gas molecules, as in other worlds.
According to Zhang, this makes Pluto even more interesting to study. Also gives an idea of primitive atmosphere of the earth, which was almost entirely made up of nitrogen and a mixture of hydrocarbons. “By studying the mist and chemistry of Pluto, we can gain new knowledge about the conditions that made the earth habitable.”
JWST studies are just a first step in understanding the complexity of interaction in Pluto’s atmosphere, as well as their contribution to the materials found in Caronte.
“Pluto is at a really unique point with regard to the behavior of planetary atmospheres. Therefore, this gives us the opportunity to expand our understanding of how fog behaves in extreme environments”, Explicou Zhang.
“And it’s not just Pluto – we know that Neptune moon, Triton, and Saturn’s moon, Titan, also have similar atmospheres of nitrogen and hydrocarbons, full of fog particles. So we also need to rethink their roles.”
