Difference between revisions of "New Horizons mission"
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| − | '''New Horizons''' is a NASA mission to explore [[Pluto]] and other distant objects in the Solar System. The spacecraft was launched in 2006 and passed [[Jupiter]] in March 2007<ref>http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/newhorizons/news/nh_jupiter_oct09.html</ref>. | + | '''New Horizons''' is a NASA mission to explore [[Pluto]] and other distant objects in the Solar System. The spacecraft was launched in 2006 and passed [[Jupiter]] in March 2007<ref>http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/newhorizons/news/nh_jupiter_oct09.html</ref>. In September 2008 it has passed beyond [[Saturn|Saturn's]] orbit <ref>http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/mission/whereis_nh.php</ref>. |
| − | It is the first mission ever launched to explore Pluto. | + | In June of 2015, New Horizons passed through the system of Pluto and its five moons. It sent back the first detailed photographs of this object since its discovery. It also sent back many false-color photographs, including one NASA simply cannot or will not explain: frozen [[carbon monoxide]] in a prominent plain on the surface. |
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| + | It is the first mission ever launched to explore Pluto. In its passage it made extensive observations of Pluto and its five moons. It will also study the [[Kuiper Belt]]. Mission planners still hope to steer it toward at least one other Kuiper belt object for a similar reconnaissance. | ||
== External Links == | == External Links == | ||
Revision as of 23:18, January 5, 2016
New Horizons is a NASA mission to explore Pluto and other distant objects in the Solar System. The spacecraft was launched in 2006 and passed Jupiter in March 2007[1]. In September 2008 it has passed beyond Saturn's orbit [2].
In June of 2015, New Horizons passed through the system of Pluto and its five moons. It sent back the first detailed photographs of this object since its discovery. It also sent back many false-color photographs, including one NASA simply cannot or will not explain: frozen carbon monoxide in a prominent plain on the surface.
It is the first mission ever launched to explore Pluto. In its passage it made extensive observations of Pluto and its five moons. It will also study the Kuiper Belt. Mission planners still hope to steer it toward at least one other Kuiper belt object for a similar reconnaissance.