Artist's impression of the planet Pluto (foreground) the nineth & smallest planet of our solar system & its close satellite (moon) Charon. Discovered
RMID:Image ID:2ADM88A
Image details
Contributor:
Science Photo Library / Alamy Stock PhotoImage ID:
2ADM88AFile size:
51 MB (2.8 MB Compressed download)Releases:
Model - no | Property - noDo I need a release?Dimensions:
3777 x 4724 px | 32 x 40 cm | 12.6 x 15.7 inches | 300dpiDate taken:
30 August 1985Photographer:
NASA/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARYMore information:
Artist's impression of the planet Pluto (foreground) the nineth & smallest planet of our solar system & its close satellite (moon) Charon. Discovered in 1930 at the Lowell Observatory by Clyde Tombaugh, Pluto has a 248 year orbit around the sun. The satellite Charon was discovered in 1977 by J. Christy. Some doubt exists whether Pluto should be regarded as a true planet; it might be more appropriate to describe it and Charon as comprising a double asteroid. Pluto is too faint to be observed by small telescopes and no surface details may be seen; spectroscopic data indicates that its surface is covered in a layer of methane ice.