New Horizons at Pluto

[Lukraak_Sisser]

Actually, that would be more apt for Charon. You can clearly see the trench circling the 'moon' and the laser dish is up to the right.

 

[Belz...]

A new higher resolution image:

[qimg]http://www.internationalskeptics.com/forums/imagehosting/476255a7d16a57bc9.jpg[/qimg]

That is no dwarf planet !

 

[Ziggurat]

A new higher resolution image:

[qimg]http://www.internationalskeptics.com/forums/imagehosting/476255a7d16a57bc9.jpg[/qimg]

These comparisons of Pluto to the Death Star are insulting to Mimas.

 

[Rincewind]

These comparisons of Pluto to the Death Star are insulting to Mimas.

[qimg]http://spacepictures.org/albums/userpics/Mimas_moon_saturn.jpg[/qimg]

Two Death Stars?

At least?

 

[Spindrift]

These comparisons of Pluto to the Death Star are insulting to Mimas.

[qimg]http://spacepictures.org/albums/userpics/Mimas_moon_saturn.jpg[/qimg]

That's a decoy.

 

[Belz...]

These comparisons of Pluto to the Death Star are insulting to Mimas.

And Iapetus.

 

[Skeptic Ginger]

The Earth isn't tidally locked to the Moon and is heated by it. However that heating is only a very small proportion of Earth's energy budget.

http://www.skepticalscience.com/heatflow.html

I think you have a typo there and you said just what I said (except your typo).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tidal_locking

Tidal locking results in the Moon rotating about its axis in about the same time it takes to orbit Earth. Except for libration effects, this results in the Moon keeping the same face turned towards Earth

 

[Skeptic Ginger]

My guess is that there would not be much internal heat in Pluto as it is so much smaller than the moon. Any heat would be rapidly lost. I like the idea that the surface partially melts when Pluto gets nearer the sun.

That doesn't make sense. It doesn't get that close to the Sun.

The heating (if that's what's being observed is a mystery. Radioactivity is one hypothesis.

 

[sphenisc]

I think you have a typo there and you said just what I said (except your typo).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tidal_locking

No, I meant what I said. Tidal locking is not a symmetric relation.

 

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Two Death Stars?

At least?

Two fully armed and operational Death Stars!!!

 

[steve s]

I think you have a typo there and you said just what I said (except your typo).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tidal_locking

The moon is tidally locked to the earth. The earth is not tidally locked to the moon.

Steve S

 

[Elagabalus]

[qimg]http://i57.tinypic.com/ngt7p4.jpg[/qimg]
Image courtesy NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute

As a layperson, the features on Charon that stand out:

The black eye (unoffically named Mordor) that dominates the upper hemisphere.

The differences in the upper and lower hemispheres -- bound by the linear feature that kind of traces maybe 20° S across most of this face.

The feature almost at the terminator to the right of and somewhat lower than the "Mordor" feature. Hopefully LORRI got a better orientation on whatever that is.

The Black eye is quite obviously where Charon was hit with lightning. Charon is proof of the Electric Universe ...

 

[pgwenthold]

All hail Clyde Tombaugh!!!!

(I heard Clyde Tombaugh speak when I was an undergraduate)

 

[Belz...]

That doesn't make sense. It doesn't get that close to the Sun.

Though in a vacuum, direct exposure to the sun, even at that distance, may be enough to turn a solid into a fluid, depending on the composition.

 

[Belz...]

The moon is tidally locked to the earth. The earth is not tidally locked to the moon.

Yet.

 

[alfaniner]

Aside from deciding if Pluto is a planet or not, I don't think they've settled on how to pronounce "Charon", either. I believe the resident expert said it with a hard CH - like "Karon".

 

[Skeptic Ginger]

No, I meant what I said. Tidal locking is not a symmetric relation.

Oh good grief!

Like that made a difference in the context of the issue at hand.

OK then, the Moon is tidally locked and you don't see significant heating.

It's one thing to clarify an issue, I like learning something as much as the next guy. But there was no reason to post like it was a pissing contest.

 

[phunk]

Aside from deciding if Pluto is a planet or not, I don't think they've settled on how to pronounce "Charon", either. I believe the resident expert said it with a hard CH - like "Karon".

I've heard "sharon", "charon", and "karon" and have no idea which is correct.

 

[Skeptic Ginger]

Though in a vacuum, direct exposure to the sun, even at that distance, may be enough to turn a solid into a fluid, depending on the composition.

There are so many other icy bodies out there, wouldn't some of the others experience the same melting?

And Pluto rotates every 6 hours, making it harder for solar heating to build up.

 

[grmcdorman]

Aside from deciding if Pluto is a planet or not, I don't think they've settled on how to pronounce "Charon", either. I believe the resident expert said it with a hard CH - like "Karon".

See http://www.wired.com/2015/07/really-heres-pronounce-charon-probably/

Apparently the namer of Charon was not thinking of Greek mythology when he originally selected the name. So valid pronunciations seem to be:

• "Gheghron" (ancient Greek, approximately, apparently)
• "Share-on" (soft 'C' sound)

Not sure about "Karon" (hard 'C' sound), as the linked article doesn't seem to include that.

Quote:

We all say it both ways in a single sentence.