{"id":12243,"date":"2016-02-23T22:29:25","date_gmt":"2016-02-24T03:29:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=12243"},"modified":"2016-02-23T22:29:25","modified_gmt":"2016-02-24T03:29:25","slug":"new-horizons-charons-underground-ocean-stretches-the-surface","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=12243","title":{"rendered":"New Horizons: Charon’s underground ocean stretches the surface"},"content":{"rendered":"

Checking in on the\u00a0New Horizons<\/a>\u00a0probe to see its latest discovery:<\/span><\/p>\n

Pluto\u2019s \u2018Hulk-like\u2019 Moon Charon: A Possible Ancient Ocean?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Pluto\u2019s largest moon may have gotten too big for its own skin.<\/p>\n

\"Charon_SerenityChasma_Context_02182016_Melded[1]\"<\/a>
Image credit: NASA\/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory\/Southwest Research Institute<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>Images from NASA\u2019s New Horizons mission suggest that Charon once had a subsurface ocean that has long since frozen and expanded, pushing out on the moon\u2019s surface and causing it to stretch and fracture on a massive scale.<\/p>\n

The side of Charon viewed by the passing New Horizons spacecraft in July 2015 is characterized by a system of \u201cpull apart\u201d tectonic faults, which are expressed as ridges, scarps and valleys\u2014the latter sometimes reaching more than 4 miles (6.5 kilometers) deep. Charon\u2019s tectonic landscape shows that, somehow, the moon expanded in its past, and \u2013 like Bruce Banner tearing his shirt as he becomes the Incredible Hulk \u2013 Charon\u2019s surface fractured as it stretched.<\/p>\n

Charon\u2019s outer layer is primarily water ice. When the moon was young this layer was warmed by the decay of radioactive elements, as well as Charon\u2019s own internal heat of formation. Scientists say Charon could have been warm enough to cause the water ice to melt deep down, creating a subsurface ocean. But as Charon cooled over time, this ocean would have frozen and expanded (as happens when water freezes), pushing the surface outward and producing the massive chasms we see today.<\/p>\n

This image focuses on a section of the feature informally named Serenity Chasma, part of a vast equatorial belt of chasms on Charon. In fact, this system of chasms is one of the longest seen anywhere in the solar system, running at least 1,100 miles (about 1,800 kilometers) long and reaching 4.5 miles (7.5 kilometers) deep. By comparison, the Grand Canyon is 277 miles (446 kilometers) long and just over a mile (1.6 kilometers) deep.<\/p>\n

The lower portion of the image shows color-coded topography of the same scene. Measurements of the shape of this feature tell scientists that Charon\u2019s water-ice layer may have been at least partially liquid in its early history, and has since refrozen.<\/p>\n

This image was obtained by the Long-Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) on New Horizons. North is up; illumination is from the top-left of the image. The image resolution is about 1,290 feet (394 meters) per pixel. The image measures 240 miles (386 kilometers) long and 110 miles (175 kilometers) wide. It was obtained at a range of approximately 48,900 miles (78,700 kilometers) from Charon, about an hour and 40 minutes before New Horizons\u2019 closest approach to Charon on July 14, 2015.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Checking in on the\u00a0New Horizons\u00a0probe to see its latest discovery: Pluto\u2019s \u2018Hulk-like\u2019 Moon Charon: A Possible Ancient Ocean? Pluto\u2019s largest moon may have gotten too big for its own skin. Images from NASA\u2019s New Horizons mission suggest that Charon once had a subsurface ocean that has long since frozen and expanded, pushing out on the … Continue reading New Horizons: Charon’s underground ocean stretches the surface<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[97,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12243","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pluto","category-space-science"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p34aWK-3bt","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":11520,"url":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=11520","url_meta":{"origin":12243,"position":0},"title":"New Horizons: Images & fly-over video of Pluto’s moon Charon show a dramatic landscape","author":"TopSpacer","date":"October 4, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The New Horizons missions releases great imagery of Pluto's moon Charon: Pluto\u2019s Big Moon Charon Reveals a Colorful and Violent History NASA\u2019s New Horizons spacecraft has returned the best color and the highest resolution images yet of Pluto\u2019s largest moon, Charon \u2013 and these pictures show a surprisingly complex and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Pluto and beyond"","block_context":{"text":"Pluto and beyond","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?cat=97"},"img":{"alt_text":"Charon-Neutral-Bright-Release[1]","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/Charon-Neutral-Bright-Release1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10372,"url":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=10372","url_meta":{"origin":12243,"position":1},"title":"Videos: New Horizons Pluto mission update + Color image of Pluto and moon Charon","author":"TopSpacer","date":"April 14, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The\u00a0New Horizons\u00a0spacecraft moves ever closer to Pluto for its fly-by in July. 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New Horizons Spies Charon Orbiting Pluto Pluto and Charon dance in this sequence of images taken over 6 days.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Multiple media"","block_context":{"text":"Multiple media","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?cat=36"},"img":{"alt_text":"PR_E12_proper_nosat_3fps","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/PR_E12_proper_nosat_3fps.gif?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11549,"url":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=11549","url_meta":{"origin":12243,"position":3},"title":"New Horizons: Pluto’s blue haze and water ice + Moons Nix and Hydra","author":"TopSpacer","date":"October 8, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The latest findings from the New Horizons mission: Pluto\u2019s Big Moon Charon Reveals a Colorful and Violent History The first color images of Pluto\u2019s atmospheric hazes, returned by NASA\u2019s New Horizons spacecraft last week, reveal that the hazes are blue. \u201cWho would have expected a blue sky in the Kuiper\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Pluto and beyond"","block_context":{"text":"Pluto and beyond","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?cat=97"},"img":{"alt_text":"Blue-Skies-on-Pluto-FINAL[1]","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/Blue-Skies-on-Pluto-FINAL1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10933,"url":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=10933","url_meta":{"origin":12243,"position":4},"title":"New Horizons: Best image yet of Pluto and its moon Charon","author":"TopSpacer","date":"July 10, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Pluto and Charon are coming into focus as New Horizons' probe nears fly-by. 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