Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. GPS News .




OUTER PLANETS
Name the features on Pluto and its moon Charon
by Brooks Hays
Washington (UPI) Mar 23, 2015


disclaimer: image is for illustration purposes only

NASA scientists and officials at the International Astronomical Union (IAU) are asking for the public's help in naming the geological components of Pluto and Charon.

As of now, there aren't any geophysical features on Pluto to supply with names. That's because, as of now, even the sharpest images of Photo don't reveal much more than a series of colored blurry blobs. The same goes for Pluto's moon Charon.

Even Hubble, capable of capturing massive galaxies in stunning detail, can't exactly show astronomers the secrets of Pluto's surface. As of now, Hubble's photographs of Pluto and its moon are the best astronomers have.

But NASA's New Horizons probe is quickly approaching the dwarf planet and its moon. As it gets closer and closer -- culminating in first-ever flyby of the dwarf planet on July 14, 2015 -- the probe will be able to send back increasingly revealing high-res photos of Pluto and its lunar companion.

And when it does, the details of the two objects' surface features will emerge. Those blurry blobs will slowly become craters and crevices, rifts and valleys. And these features (or at least the most impressive and prominent ones) will require names. That's where the public comes in.

In cooperation with the International Astronomical Union, members of the New Horizons science team are requesting name ideas from the backyard astronomer and everyday science fans.

The best ideas will be incorporated into the New Horizons team's proposals to the IAU, the international group that approves all cosmic names.

Participants are encouraged to vote for names from a long list of options at the Our Pluto website. The options are organized in three categories: History of Exploration, Literature of Exploration and Mythology of the Underworld. Participants can also nominate names they don't see already listed.

Participation is open to the public through April 7, 2015.


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
The million outer planets of a star called Sol






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








OUTER PLANETS
Science Shorts: Why Pluto?
St Louis MO (SPX) Mar 06, 2015
What is Pluto? A planetary eccentric? A Kuiper Belt object? A binary? A dwarf planet? It is, of course, all of these - and much more. For the New Horizons team, Pluto is "king of the Kuiper Belt," the leader of a complex tribe of moons, and a beacon to an unexplored solar realm. For many visitors to this site, the story of Pluto's discovery is familiar. Pluto's discovery in 1930 was also t ... read more


OUTER PLANETS
Pesticides not the sole culprit in honey bee colony declines

China imposes new curbs on Norway salmon imports

Lombardy, the new Caspian for caviar

Season-long nutrient supply in soybean a low-hanging fruit

OUTER PLANETS
Quantum computing: 1 step closer with defect-free logic gate

A new way to control light, critical for next-gen of super fast computing

Optical fibers light the way for brain-like computing

KAIST develops ultrathin polymer insulators key to low-power soft electronics

OUTER PLANETS
NASA reveals electric plane with 18 motors

India receiving upgraded Mirage fighters

Sikorsky, Polish subsidiary sweeten helicopter contract bid

LEAPTech to Demonstrate Electric Propulsion Technologies

OUTER PLANETS
Hidden benefits of electric vehicles revealed

SDV puts its First Hybrid Shuttle on the road for last-mile delivery

Pirelli boss attacks 'nationalist' China deal critics

Chinese takeover of Pirelli met with resignation in Italy

OUTER PLANETS
Cheap eurozone takeaway fuels Chinese appetites

'Made in China' tops EU list of unsafe products

China approves three more free-trade zones

Switzerland, Luxembourg plan to join China-led development bank

OUTER PLANETS
Amazon's carbon uptake declines as trees die faster

Conifers' helicoptering seeds are result of long evolutionary experiment

Study: Only two intact forests left on Earth

Protected areas in Indonesia ineffective in preventing deforestation

OUTER PLANETS
UK data hub will maximize benefits of Europe's EO program

US and UAE Ink Bilateral Space Cooperation

New NASA Mission to Study Ocean Color, Airborne Particles and Clouds

NASA spacecraft in Earth's orbit, preparing to study magnetic reconnection

OUTER PLANETS
NC State researchers create 'nanofiber gusher'

Click! That's how modern chemistry bonds nanoparticles to a substrate

Sharper nanoscopy

Nanospheres cooled with light to explore the limits of quantum physics




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.