Browsing: Pluto

Pluto is a dwarf planet located in the Kuiper Belt, a region of icy bodies beyond Neptune, and was once considered the ninth planet in the solar system until its reclassification by the International Astronomical Union in 2006. Despite its small size and distant orbit, Pluto has captivated scientists and the public alike, especially following NASA’s New Horizons flyby in 2015, which revealed a surprisingly dynamic world with towering ice mountains, vast nitrogen glaciers, and a possible subsurface ocean. Pluto’s complex geology and thin atmosphere challenge previous assumptions about what small, icy bodies can be, making it a focal point in the study of planetary formation and the diversity of worlds in our solar system.