Ever wondered what a “summer” on Pluto might be like? Well now you can see for yourself.
NASA released detailed close-up images of Pluto on Friday that were transmitted from its New Horizons spacecraft, revealing the clearest look to date of the dwarf planet. The images were taken during a July flyby and offer an unprecedented glimpse into Pluto’s diverse terrain, complete with craters, mountains and ice fields.
They are the best photos of Pluto that most Earthlings can hope to see their lifetimes.
“These close-up images, showing the diversity of terrain on Pluto, demonstrate the power of our robotic planetary explorers to return intriguing data to scientists back here on planet Earth,” John Grunsfeld, former astronaut and associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, said in a statement. “New Horizons thrilled us during the July flyby with the first close images of Pluto, and as the spacecraft transmits the treasure trove of images in its onboard memory back to us, we continue to be amazed by what we see.”
Emma Margolin
Emma Margolin is a reporter at MSNBC.com.
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