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Related: About this forumPluto's icy heart makes winds blow (earthsky.org)
Posted by Deborah Byrd in Space | February 9, 2020
Wasnt it wonderful when after all the disappointment surrounding Plutos loss of major planet status in 2006 the New Horizons spacecraft made its historic sweep past the planet in 2015 and discovered a big heart on its surface? Last week (February 4, 2020), scientists announced something new and interesting about Plutos heart, which is called Tombaugh Regio, and which is a vast plain on the planet covered with nitrogen ice. The new research shows that Plutos renowned nitrogen heart rules its atmospheric circulation. It causes Plutos winds to blow.
This new research was published February 4 in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets. This journal is published by the American Geophysical Union (AGU). A statement from AGU explained:
The new work suggests that this cycle pushes Plutos atmosphere to circulate in the opposite direction of its spin a unique phenomenon called retro-rotation. As air whips close to the surface, it transports heat, grains of ice and haze particles to create dark wind streaks and plains across the north and northwestern regions of Tombaugh Regio. According to the studys lead author, astrophysicist and planetary scientist Tanguy Bertrand of NASAs Ames Research Center in California:
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more: https://earthsky.org/space/plutos-icy-heart-makes-winds-blow