When NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft flew by Pluto in 2015, it uncovered a breathtaking landscape of ice and haze. This flyby hinted at the possibility of a liquid ocean beneath Pluto’s surface, raising many intriguing questions for scientists. Carly Howett, a planetary scientist from the University of Oxford and part of the New Horizons team, mentioned at a recent conference that many mysteries about Pluto remain unsolved even a decade later. To tackle these puzzles, Howett and her team have proposed a follow-up mission named Persephone.
Persephone aims to explore Pluto and could potentially operate for over 50 years. This ambitious mission would require advanced engineering and thorough mission planning. In a recent study, Howett highlighted that sustaining such a long mission poses unique challenges never faced before in space exploration.
### Could There Be an Ocean?
Interestingly, Pluto is named after the Roman god of the underworld. To tie in with this mythology and reflect their diverse team’s leadership, the researchers chose the name Persephone, who is associated with Pluto as his wife.
The primary goal of Persephone would be to find out if Pluto has a subsurface ocean today. Before New Horizons, most scientists believed it was unlikely, since many icy moons typically freeze over time. However, discoveries from New Horizons, including Pluto’s young surface, have rekindled the possibility of a hidden ocean.
For the mission, Persephone would carry 11 instruments, some modified from those used in previous missions. These tools would help scientists look for signs of liquid water beneath the ice by examining Pluto’s shape and surface features.
### The Intriguing Landscape
Persephone would also study unusual formations on Pluto and its moon Charon. Pluto’s surface features, like the unique blades of methane ice in Tartarus Dorsa, catch scientists’ attention. There’s still debate about how these strange formations came to be, especially given that New Horizons observed Pluto quickly during its flyby.
Persephone would orbit Pluto for over three years, providing much more detailed observations. New Horizons only had a few hours to study Pluto closely, but this new mission aims for extended analysis.
The mission will also investigate the icy bodies in the Kuiper Belt, including Pluto’s smaller moons like Nix and Hydra, which have shown signs of interesting surface materials such as water ice and ammonia. With focused observations, Persephone could help answer critical questions about these moons and their origins.
### Mission Challenges
Although the Persephone mission is exciting, it’s not without its hurdles. Launching a spacecraft to Pluto takes a lot of planning. The trip could take over 27 years due to the alignment of planets. Also, there is a significant need for a reliable power source, specifically Next-Generation Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators (NGRTGs). Currently, NASA produces a limited amount of plutonium for these generators, making it a complex challenge to power the mission effectively.
A study by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine found that past missions, such as Hubble and Voyager, have endured well beyond expectations. This gives hope that Persephone may also succeed despite the obstacles.
It’s evident that Persephone represents not just a mission to explore Pluto, but a long journey that could last generations of scientists. It would require each new team to collaborate closely with their predecessors, ensuring the knowledge and insights gained are passed down.
While the mission still faces questions about funding and technology, the excitement among scientists like Howett demonstrates a commitment to unraveling Pluto’s secrets. The ambition to return to Pluto shows how important and fascinating this distant dwarf planet remains in our quest to understand the solar system and beyond.
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