Pluto’s terrain has been named for the first time – with features honoring everything from Sputnik to pioneers of mountaineering to underworld mythology.
It is the first set of official names of surface features on Pluto to be approved by the IAU, the internationally recognised authority for naming celestial bodies and their surface features.
NASA’s New Horizons team proposed the names to the IAU following the first reconnaissance of Pluto and its moons by the New Horizons spacecraft.
NASA’s New Horizons team proposed the names to the IAU following the first reconnaissance of Pluto and its moons by the New Horizons spacecraft. Some of the names were suggested by members of the public during the Our Pluto campaign,
The IAU has assigned names to fourteen geological features on the surface of Pluto.
The names pay homage to the underworld mythology, pioneering space missions, historic pioneers who crossed new horizons in exploration, and scientists and engineers associated with Pluto and the Kuiper Belt.
‘We’re very excited to approve names recognising people of significance to Pluto and the pursuit of exploration as well as the mythology of the underworld,’ said Rita Schulz, chair of the IAU Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature.
‘These names highlight the importance of pushing to the frontiers of discovery.
‘We appreciate the contribution of the general public in the form of their their naming suggestions and the New Horizons team for proposing these names to us.’
PLUTO’S NEW TERRAIN NAMES REVEALED
Sputnik Planitia is a large plain named after Sputnik 1, the first space satellite, launched by the Soviet Union in 1957
Tombaugh Regio honours Clyde Tombaugh (1906-1997), the U.S. astronomer who discovered Pluto in 1930 from Lowell Observatory in Arizona.
Burney crater honors Venetia Burney (1918-2009), who as an 11-year-old schoolgirl suggested the name ‘Pluto’ for Clyde Tombaugh’s newly discovered planet. Later in life she taught mathematics and economics.
Sputnik Planitia is a large plain named after Sputnik 1, the first space satellite, launched by the Soviet Union in 1957.
Tenzing Montes and Hillary Montes are mountain ranges honouring Tenzing Norgay (1914-1986) and Sir Edmund Hillary (1919-2008), the Indian/Nepali Sherpa and New Zealand mountaineer who were the first to reach the summit of Mount Everest and return safely.
Al-Idrisi Montes honours Ash-Sharif al-Idrisi (1100-1165/66), a noted Arab mapmaker and geographer whose landmark work of medieval geography is sometimes translated as ‘The Pleasure of Him Who Longs to Cross the Horizons.’
Djanggawul Fossae defines a network of long, narrow depressions named for the Djanggawuls, three ancestral beings in indigenous Australian mythology who travelled between the island of the dead and Australia, creating the landscape and filling it with vegetation.
Tenzing Montes and Hillary Montes are mountain ranges honouring Tenzing Norgay (R) and Sir Edmund Hillary (L)
Sleipnir Fossa is named for the powerful, eight-legged horse of Norse mythology that carried the god Odin into the underworld.
Virgil Fossae honors Virgil, one of the greatest Roman poets and Dante’s fictional guide through hell and purgatory in the Divine Comedy.
Adlivun Cavus is a deep depression named for Adlivun, the underworld in Inuit mythology.
Hayabusa Terra is a large land mass saluting the Japanese spacecraft and mission (2003-2010) that returned the first asteroid sample.
Voyager Terra honours the pair of NASA spacecraft, launched in 1977, that performed the first ‘grand tour’ of all four giant planets. The Voyager spacecraft are now probing the boundary between the Sun and interstellar space.
Tartarus Dorsa is a ridge named for Tartarus, the deepest, darkest pit of the underworld in Greek mythology.
Elliot crater recognises James Elliot (1943-2011), an MIT researcher who pioneered the use of stellar occultations to study the Solar System — leading to discoveries such as the rings of Uranus and the first detection of Pluto’s thin atmosphere.
Some of the names were suggested by members of the public during the Our Pluto campaign, which was launched as a partnership between the IAU, the New Horizons project and the SETI Institute.
Other names had been used informally by the New Horizons science team to describe the many regions, mountain ranges, plains, valleys and craters discovered during the first close-up look at the surfaces of Pluto and its largest moon, Charon.
More names are expected to be proposed to the IAU, both for Pluto and for its moons.
‘The approved designations honour many people and space missions who paved the way for the historic exploration of Pluto and the Kuiper Belt, the most distant worlds ever explored,’ said Alan Stern, New Horizons Principal Investigator from the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in Boulder, Colorado.
NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft is now more than 3.5 billion miles away from Earth, as it continues its journey beyond Pluto to an icy target in the outer reaches of the solar system.
Throughout the years, the craft has collected countless observations of the tiny planet and its moons, offering a remarkable look at the landscape of these distant worlds.
Earlier this year the space agency has released breathtaking flyover videos using the New Horizons data and digital elevation models, revealing a close-up look at everything from ominous craters of Pluto’s ‘Cthulhu Macula,’ to the bizarre ‘moated mountains’ on its largest moon, Charon.
In recognition of the two-year anniversary of New Horizons’ Pluto flyby, NASA also revealed a stunning set of global elevation maps, showing the complex terrain of Pluto and Charon.
Throughout the years, the craft has collected countless observations of the tiny planet and its moons, offering a remarkable look at the landscape of these distant worlds. In recognition of the two-year anniversary of New Horizons’ Pluto flyby, NASA also revealed a stunning set of global elevation maps, showing the complex terrain of Pluto and Charon
‘The complexity of the Pluto system – from its geology to its satellite system to its atmosphere – has been beyond our wildest imagination,’ said Alan Stern, New Horizons principal investigator from the Southwest Research Institute.
‘Everywhere we turn are new mysteries.
‘These new maps from the landmark exploration of Pluto by NASA’s New Horizon’s mission in 2015 will help unravel these mysteries and are for everyone to enjoy.’
In two stunning flyover videos, NASA compiles the New Horizons data into first-person perspectives of Pluto and Charon.
The video of Pluto begins with views of the highlands beside a massive nitrogen ice plain known as Sputnik Planitia.
Beyond the western border of that area, an expanse of craters speckles the dark terrain of Cthulhu Macula.
Then, a mountain range appears to the right.
The remarkable footage also shows views of the Voyager Terra highlands, and the deep pits of Pioneer Terra.
Then, it concludes in a region known as Tartarus Dorsa.
NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft is now more than 3.5 billion miles away from Earth, as it continues its journey beyond Pluto to an icy target in the outer reaches of the solar system
In the second video, the data shows a look across Pluto’s largest moon, Charon.
It begins where New Horizons made its closest approach, and continues on to explore the Serenity Chasma.
Then, it goes north for views of the Dorothy Gale crater and Mordor Macuka, the ‘dark polar hood.’
The video of Pluto begins with views of the highlands beside a massive nitrogen ice plain known as Sputnik Planitia. Beyond the western border of that area, an expanse of craters speckles the dark terrain of Cthulhu Macula
The video then turns toward the south, to show a landscape known as Oz Terra.
It ends with a look at the flat plains of Vulcan Planum, and the Clarke Montes mountains.
New Horizons officially completed its Pluto mission this past October, after sending back the last bit of data from its 2015 flyby.
Given the staggering distance, at more than 3 billion miles away, it took over five hours for the image to reach Earth.
New Horizons officially completed its Pluto mission this past October, after sending back the last bit of data from its 2015 flyby
The craft is now on its way to another target further out in the solar system, which it is expected to reach in 2019.’
Last year, NASA scientists discussed the importance of the New Horizons data, ahead of the influx if its last observations.
‘New Horizons not only completed the era of first reconnaissance of the planets, the mission has intrigued and inspired,’ Nasa’s Director of Planetary Science Jim Green said at the time.
‘Who knew that Pluto would have a heart? Even today, New Horizons captures our imagination, rekindles our curiosity, and reminds us of what’s possible.’
The video then turns toward the south, to show a landscape known as Oz Terra. It ends with a look at the flat plains of Vulcan Planum, and the Clarke Montes mountains
Last year, NASA scientists discussed the importance of the New Horizons data, ahead of the influx if its last observations. ‘New Horizons not only completed the era of first reconnaissance of the planets, the mission has intrigued and inspired,’ Nasa’s Director of Planetary Science Jim Green said at the time. Pluto (right) and Charon (left) are pictured