Kastara.ID, Jakarta – Researchers found that the atmosphere on Pluto disappeared because the temperature on the dwarf planet’s surface continued to fall.
Pluto was previously the ninth planet in the solar system. But in 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) decided to change the definition of a planet which made Pluto excluded from the ranks of planets in the solar system. Currently Pluto is categorized as a dwarf planet along with a number of celestial objects in the Kuiper Belt.
The dwarf planet, which is 4.8 billion kilometers from Earth, was observed by scientists as it passed in front of a star in 2018. Through the beam of starlight coming from behind Pluto, researchers were able to make observations on the dwarf planet and its atmosphere.
An analogy for this is the Sun heating the sand on the beach. SwRI research staff Leslie Young who studies the interactions of icy planetary objects in the solar system with their surface and atmosphere.
“There is a lot of sunlight at midday, but the sand will continue to absorb heat into the afternoon, so it will be hottest in the afternoon. Pluto’s persistent atmosphere suggests that the nitrogen ice reservoirs on Pluto’s surface are maintained by storing heat beneath the surface. The latest data shows that cooling is starting to occur,” said Young.
Reporting from Space, researchers saw the star begin to disappear when Pluto passed in front of it and then the star reappeared after the dwarf planet finished passing. The phenomenon lasted for about two minutes. (nth)
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