According to ClapWay, the latest pictures of Pluto reveal that it is encircled by layers of “vast haze”. “This is our first gaze at weather conditions in Pluto’s situation”, New Horizons inventor Michael Summers said.

Flowing ice as well as an unexpected extended haze are among some of the newest features discovered by NASA’s New Horizons mission, which shows distant Pluto to be an icy world of mystery. As a result, methane breaks down, and more complex hydrocarbons begin forming; specifically, ethylene and acetylene, both of which have been found in Pluto’s atmosphere.

This revelation, scientists believe, is the reason why Pluto’s surface has had its red-like color. “At Pluto’s temperatures of minus-390 degrees Fahrenheit, these ices can flow like a glacier”, explained New Horizons Geology, Geophysics, and Imaging deputy team leader Bill McKinnon.

“We’ve only seen surfaces like this on active worlds like Earth and Mars”, said mission co-investigator John Spencer of SwRI.

The research illustrates clear sheets of mist in Pluto’s nitrogen, co2 and methane situation. The images captured were obtained 280,000 miles (450,000 km) away from Pluto. However, the mission is not yet over, as the spacecraft is still sending photographs of the dwarf planet on Earth, and these new pictures are unprecedented.

As the data from New Horizons continues to slowly make its way back to Earth, experts have been revealing more about what they’ve managed to find so far on Pluto and its moon Charon. The spacecraft is healthy and all systems are operating at a normal function.

Moreover, the features that are on Pluto’s moon Charon are about to be named after popular science fiction heroes. The International Astronomical Union, which is in charge of approving the names of celestial bodies, said that the features on Pluto’s moon Charon should have names that are of fictional destinations, vessels, explorers, as well as milestones.

http://natmonitor.com/2015/07/29/scientists-learning-a-lot-about-plutos-atmosphere/