Related papers: Pluto's Atmosphere Does Not Collapse
On 6 Jun 2020, Pluto's stellar occultation was successfully observed at a ground-based observatory and Pluto's atmospheric parameters were investigated. We used an atmospheric model of Pluto (DO15), assuming a spherical and transparent pure…
We present results from a multi-chord Pluto stellar occultation observed on 29 June 2015 from New Zealand and Australia. This occurred only two weeks before the NASA New Horizons flyby of the Pluto system and serves as a useful comparison…
A stellar occultation by Pluto was observed on 6 June 2020 with the 1.3-m and 3.6-m telescopes located at Devasthal, Nainital, India, using imaging systems in the I and H bands, respectively. From this event, we derive a surface pressure…
Context. Pluto's tenuous nitrogen (N2) atmosphere undergoes strong seasonal effects due to high obliquity and orbital eccentricity, and has been recently (July 2015) observed by the New Horizons spacecraft. Goals are (i) construct a well…
Several trace constituents can reach saturation vapor pressure in Pluto's present day atmosphere. As such, we describe a search for discrete could features in Pluto's atmosphere using New Horizons data obtained on 14-15 July 2015, during…
Observations made during the New Horizons flyby provide a detailed snapshot of the current state of Pluto's atmosphere. While the lower atmosphere (at altitudes <200 km) is consistent with ground-based stellar occultations, the upper…
We analyze two multi-chord stellar occultations by Pluto observed on July 18th, 2012 and May 4th, 2013, and monitored respectively from five and six sites. They provide a total of fifteen light-curves, twelve of them being used for a…
We report observations of a stellar occultation by Pluto on 2019 July 17. A single-chord high-speed (time resolution $= 2\,$s) photometry dataset was obtained with a CMOS camera mounted on the Tohoku University 60 cm telescope (Haleakala,…
Since the last Pluto volatile transport models were published (Hansen and Paige 1996), we have (i) new stellar occultation data from 2002 and 2006-2012 that have roughly twice the pressure as the discovery occultation of 1988, (ii) new…
The Pluto system was recently explored by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft, making closest approach on 14 July 2015. Pluto's surface displays diverse landforms, terrain ages, albedos, colors, and composition gradients. Evidence is found for a…
Context: Pluto possesses a thin atmosphere, primarily composed of nitrogen, in which the detection of methane has been reported. Aims: The goal is to constrain essential but so far unknown parameters of Pluto's atmosphere such as the…
A stellar occultation by Pluto on 5 September 2019 yielded positive detections at two separate stations. Using an approach consistent with comparable studies, we derived a surface pressure of $11.478 \pm 0.55~\mathrm{\mu bar}$ for Pluto's…
High-resolution spectra of Pluto in the 1.66 um region, recorded with the VLT/CRIRES instrument in 2008 (2 spectra) and 2012 (5 spectra), are analyzed to constrain the spatial and vertical distribution of methane in Pluto's atmosphere and…
Pluto's icy surface has changed colour and its atmosphere has swelled since its last closest approach to the Sun in 1989. The thin atmosphere is produced by evaporating ices, and so can also change rapidly, and in particular carbon monoxide…
Pluto's atmospheric profiles (temperature and pressure) have been studied for decades from stellar occultation lightcurves. In this paper, we look at recent Pluto Global Climate Model (GCM) results (3D temperature, pressure, and density…
Context - Around the year 2000, Triton's south pole experienced an extreme summer solstice that occurs every about 650 years, when the subsolar latitude reached about 50{\deg}. Bracketing this epoch, a few occultations probed Triton's…
We present a 3D general circulation model of Pluto and Triton's atmospheres, which uses radiative-conductive-convective forcing. In both the Pluto and Triton models, an easterly (prograde) jet is present at the equator with a maximum…
Trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) in the outer Solar System are predominantly small, icy worlds long presumed to be atmosphereless except for the largest bodies. Until now, Pluto has been unique among TNOs in exhibiting a substantial…
We use a statistical-thermodynamic model to investigate the formation and composition of noble-gas-rich clathrates on Pluto's surface. By considering an atmospheric composition close to that of today's Pluto and a broad range of surface…
The New Horizons spacecraft has found evidence for geologic activity on the surface of Pluto, including extensional tectonic deformation of its water ice bedrock (see Moore et al., 2016). One mechanism that could drive extensional tectonic…