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Space & Astronomy

New video imagines touching down on Pluto

By T.K. Randall
July 17, 2016 · Comment icon 8 comments

What would it be like to land on Pluto ? Image Credit: NASA
NASA is celebrating the success of its New Horizons spacecraft by showcasing a new sequence of images.
While a mission to land on the surface of Pluto is unlikely to happen anytime soon, NASA's highly successful New Horizons probe, which last year flew by the Pluto system after a journey spanning nine years and covering three billion miles, gave us a good idea of what that might be like.

Now the space agency has released a new video composed of over 100 separate images taken by the spacecraft to simulate the experience of descending down on to Pluto's surface from space.
"Just over a year ago, Pluto was just a dot in the distance," said principle investigator Alan Stern.

"This video shows what it would be like to ride aboard an approaching spacecraft and see Pluto grow to become a world, and then to swoop down over its spectacular terrains as if we were approaching some future landing."



Source: Space.com | Comments (8)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #1 Posted by Clair 8 years ago
Really neat video.. even though you land on a vast wasteland.
Comment icon #2 Posted by freetoroam 8 years ago
LOL, they traveled over 3 billion miles and it took them 9 years to get there, I reckon they may have missed the "welcome to Pluto" party. Maybe NASA can use the booze and party poppers for their next mission in 2019 to another distant world.  
Comment icon #3 Posted by Clair 8 years ago
Yeah no kidding, right? I'm convinced that somewhere in the back of their minds they're always hoping for a little surprise. Yeah sure they pretend to be happy with surface patterns and a handful of dirt.. but deep down they want more. I know I would.
Comment icon #4 Posted by freetoroam 8 years ago
Yes, but I would say it were not at the back of their minds, but right in front.  The fantastic achievement of reaching and touching down on  such distant planets is just the start of their really goal,  to continue going further til they find some form of life out there. ....and I believe one day they will.
Comment icon #5 Posted by Waspie_Dwarf 8 years ago
The thing is that they are REAL scientists. The accumulation of knowledge is their goal, so there is no pretence, these discoveries ARE their goal.
Comment icon #6 Posted by Clair 8 years ago
Yes I realize why all new discoveries excite them as knowledge is knowledge. The 'pretense' part was tongue in cheek, and projection on my part.
Comment icon #7 Posted by Chortle 8 years ago
Google pluto "your destination is on the left"
Comment icon #8 Posted by paperdyer 8 years ago
I know Star Trek, The Motion Picture was SciFi but every time a probe leaves our Solar System V'Ger keeps coming to mind.   Great pics/video, BTW.,


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