Pluto on the viewscreen, Captain.

[Octafish]

7. New images show Pluto may have a polar N2 ice cap

New images from the New Horizons probe approaching Pluto indicate it might have a polar cap of nitrogen ice, NASA says.

The observation came in a series of pixilated images taken April 12-19 as the spacecraft closed in from 69 million miles to 64 million miles. Combined into an animation, the latest views show a rotating Pluto circled by Charon, the largest of its five known moons.

How cold is it on Pluto? Its surface temperature is estimated at minus 387 degrees Fahrenheit.

The images also reveal "changing brightness patterns from place to place as Pluto rotates, presumably caused by large-scale dark and bright patches," NASA said Tuesday.

Another series of images is planned from May 8-14, and NASA is promising another movie in mid-May. Daily observations will begin May 28 with "better and better resolution."

CONTINUED...

http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2015/04/29/pluto-new-horizons-images-polar-cap/26594269/

PS: It IS great, arcane1!