NASA released the first images from New Horizons’ Pluto flyby in July. The spacecraft began its yearlong download of new images and other data over the Labor Day weekend.
Related: NASA releases first Pluto flyby images
Thanks to favorable backlighting and high resolution, an image taken by New Horizons' Ralph/Multispectral Visual Imaging Camera (MVIC) also reveals new details of hazes throughout Pluto’s nitrogen atmosphere. The image shows more than a dozen thin haze layers extending from near the ground to at least 60 miles above the dwarf planet's surface, according to NASA.
Related Image
The
setting sun illuminates a fog or near-surface haze, which is cut by the
parallel shadows of many local hills and small mountains. The image was
taken from a distance of 11,000 miles, and the width of the image is
115 miles. (NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI)
Earlier this month NASA released images showing Pluto's stunning range of surface features, from heavily cratered terrain to icy plains.
Launched in 2006, New Horizons passed by Jupiter in 2007 on its journey to Pluto. The fastest spacecraft ever, the probe traveled at 30,000 mph on its epic trip.
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