Tag Archives: Ultima Thule

Take a Better Look at Ultima Thule

Ultima Thule in Higher-Res

As promised, the higher-resolution images of 2014 MU69 Ultima Thule are starting to come in via the New Horizons spacecraft. Just today, the team released this image, which further reveals the lumpy, bumpy, and apparently cratered character of this tiny primordial planetesimal.

Just looking at this, we can see what look like craters, or something collapsed, on the top of the Ultima lobe (the smaller one). That depression is about seven kilometers across. It might be a crater, or it could be a depression called a “collapse pit”. Or, it might be an artifact left behind after this little KBO vented gases in the very distant past.

Even a little time examining both lobes reveals some differences between the two. The scientists on the New Horizons team suggested that the two lobes “gently” bumped in the past. They stuck together as a contact binary object. The bright ring between the two lobes, the “collar”, may contain clues about the collision event that connected these lobes.

This is Only the Beginning

There’s a lot more data to come back from the spacecraft. This image is, like the others, a nice “taste” of science to come. The story of the solar system, which we all thought we “knew” is changing. That’s because the formation of planets, moons, and rings depended on ancient planetestimals like this one. Far from being the lowly leftovers, these objects are a treasury of clues about what happened back when the solar system was forming. Stay tuned! And, read more about this image here.

Follow the Action at Ultima Thule

Flyby Is in Full Swing

Want to follow the New Horizons mission at Ultima Thule, the most distant world ever visited by a spacecraft? HereĀ are some places to check out the hot flyby action!

First, mission HQ is at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab. The good folks there are putting out info via their YouTube Channel. So, keep an eye on that.

Here’s a sample of one of the video series they’ve put together.

 

Second, consider checking out the news center for the mission. Keep in mind that the servers will be pretty busy the next few days, so be patient. You can access that info here and click on the Where to Watch link.

Also, it now turns out that NASA TV will be showing a live feed of mission activities. For a while there, it seemed like NASA TV wouldn’t be working. That’s because the agency is on shutdown due to some irrational political tantrum over an unneeded wall. But, something changed in the past 24 hours. Now the agency is being allowed to share the New Horizons science with the taxpaying public. So, check that out as you can.

If you just want quick updates throughout the next few days, follow the mission at these social media links:

As well, many of us who will be on site will be tweeting, live-blogging, whatever it takes to get the word out about this amazing mission.

Stay tuned and see you at Ultima Thule!