2014 MU69 Archives - Universe Today

New Horizons’ Next Flyby Target Just Got Weirder!

8 Aug , 2017 by Matt Williams

In preparation for their historic flyby with a KBO, the New Horizons team conducted observations that indicated that the target may be different than previously thought

New Horizons Team Already Finding Surprises on Next Flyby Target

6 Jul , 2017 by Nancy Atkinson

While the New Horizons spacecraft was heading to Pluto, scientists from the mission used Hubble and other telescopes to try and find out more about the environment their spacecraft would be flying through. No one wanted New Horizons to run into unexpected dust or debris. And now, as New Horizons prepares to fly past its […]

An Astronomical Detective Tale and the Moon of 2007 OR10

21 Jun , 2017 by David Dickinson

It isn’t every day we get a new moon added to the list of solar system satellites. The combined observational power of three observatories—Kepler, Herschel and Hubble—led an astronomical detective tale to its climatic conclusion: distant Kuiper Belt Object 2007 OR10 has a tiny moon.

A Bored New Horizons Spacecraft Takes Part Time Job To Fill The Time

12 Apr , 2017 by Matt Williams

As it makes its way towards its next destination in the Kuiper Belt, the New Horizons probe has been given a new task – measuring the Cosmic Optical Background.

A Farewell to Plutoshine

26 Jan , 2017 by David Dickinson

Sometimes, its not the eye candy aspect of the image, but what it represents. A recent image of Pluto’s large moon Charon courtesy of New Horizons caught our eye. Looking like something from the grainy era of the early Space Age, we see a crescent Charon, hanging against a starry background…

Peering for Pluto: Our Guide to Opposition 2016

14 Jun , 2016 by David Dickinson

The coming month is a great time to cross Pluto off of your observing life list, with our complete guide to Pluto at opposition for 2016.

Charon’s Twin ‘Star Wars’ Craters Are Distinctly Different; New Horizons Continues Toward KBO

30 Oct , 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Just like Luke and Leia, two craters named for the Star Wars twins (Skywalker and Organa) have many similarities. They look about the same size and shape, and appear to have been created at the same time, and therefore are about the same age. But instruments on the New Horizons spacecraft detected one major difference: […]

New Horizons Maneuvers Toward Potential Kuiper Belt Target

27 Oct , 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Even though the New Horizons spacecraft hasn’t officially been approved to do a flyby of a distant Kuiper Belt Object in about 3 years, the engineering team has now performed two maneuvers in a series of four to direct the spacecraft towards an ancient and distant KBO named 2014 MU69. “Second of four engine burns […]

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