New Horizons' Next Target

[Waspie_Dwarf]

New Horizons' Next Target Just Got a Lot More Interesting

Quote

Could the next flyby target for NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft actually be two targets?

New Horizons scientists look to answer that question as they sort through new data gathered on the distant Kuiper Belt object (KBO) 2014 MU69, which the spacecraft will fly past on Jan. 1, 2019. That flyby will be the most distant in the history of space exploration, a billion miles beyond Pluto.

  Read More: NASA/JHUAPL

 

[Grandpa Greenman]

WOW, great news.  Horizon, the little spacecraft that could, awesome.  

[+Hammerclaw]

Fascinating. 

[Guest brizink]

Sounds pretty unproductive. It's not gonna hit us and we probably won't visit any time soon. Seems like a waste of time and money. I mean someone is earning six figures a year to make reports on this object. I can think of a lot of more productive things to do with that money. Idk like feed people or provide adequate housing for people in need. Perhaps a program that bolsters the economy? He'll, maybe just give me that money and I'll solve some issues with it. Like the potholes on Main St. Or maybe fund an official investigation into Hillary and the DNC.

[Trihalo42]

The thrill of exploration. Going where no man has gone before.

[bigjim36]

I think the scientist and I differ on what counts as spectacular, finding out that something that was once thought to be round, is now, potentially, could be, maybe a bit flatter than first thought, doesn't fit my definition of spectacular!

[Twin]

Rosetta comet looked like two objects and Hartley-2 comet looked like two objects. Coincidence?
Now MU-69 may look like two objects. Tri-incidence?

[qxcontinuum]

5 hours ago, Twin said:

Rosetta comet looked like two objects and Hartley-2 comet looked like two objects. Coincidence?
Now MU-69 may look like two objects. Tri-incidence?

just parallax ...

[Astra.]

18 hours ago, bigjim36 said:

I think the scientist and I differ on what counts as spectacular, finding out that something that was once thought to be round, is now, potentially, could be, maybe a bit flatter than first thought, doesn't fit my definition of spectacular!

Yes, and you would differ..as you are not a scientist....nor, would you probably appreciate much anyway, concerning space exploration and what can, and has already been achieved because of these intelligent and truly amazing people.

Personally, I find it all pretty spectacular, especially of what can be learnt. But hey!... whatever floats your boat I guess.

[Parsec]

Will it be a quick flyby or will new horizons stay around it for a couple of orbits? 

 

Being so distant from the sun and having a relatively small reflective surface, what can we expect to see from the pictures sent?