Evidence for a hot start and early ocean formation on Pluto
@article{Bierson2020EvidenceFA, title={Evidence for a hot start and early ocean formation on Pluto}, author={Carver J. Bierson and Francis Nimmo and S. Alan Stern}, journal={Nature Geoscience}, year={2020}, volume={13}, pages={468-472} }
Pluto is thought to possess a present-day ocean beneath a thick ice shell. It has generally been assumed that Pluto accreted from cold material and then later developed its ocean due to warming from radioactive decay; in this ‘cold start’ scenario, the ice shell would have experienced early compression and more recent extension. Here we compare thermal model simulations with geological observations from the New Horizons mission to suggest that Pluto was instead relatively hot when it formed…
12 Citations
Pluto's Antipodal Terrains Imply a Thick Subsurface Ocean and Hydrated Core
- GeologyGeophysical Research Letters
- 2021
Recent analysis of New Horizons data revealed an ∼1,000‐km‐diameter region of large‐scale lineations antipodal to Sputnik Planitia, the 1,200 × 2,000 km elliptical impact basin on Pluto's anti‐Charon…
Large-scale cryovolcanic resurfacing on Pluto
- GeologyNature communications
- 2022
The New Horizons spacecraft returned images and compositional data showing that terrains on Pluto span a variety of ages, ranging from relatively ancient, heavily cratered areas to very young…
Tectonism and Enhanced Cryovolcanic Potential Around a Loaded Sputnik Planitia Basin, Pluto
- GeologyJournal of Geophysical Research: Planets
- 2021
Sputnik Planitia on Pluto is a vast plain consisting of a nitrogen ice deposit filling a broad topographic depression, likely an impact basin. The basin displays a broad, raised rim and is surrounded…
Dynamics of a Solidifying Icy Satellite Shell
- Environmental ScienceJournal of Geophysical Research: Planets
- 2020
Ocean worlds have been identified as high‐priority astrobiology targets due to the link between life and liquid water. Young surface terrain on many icy bodies indicates that they support active…
Triton: Topography and Geology of a Probable Ocean World with Comparison to Pluto and Charon
- Geology, PhysicsRemote. Sens.
- 2021
Triton’s low relief is consistent with evolution of an ice shell subjected to high heat flow levels and may strengthen the case of an internal ocean on this active body.
Science Drivers for the Future Exploration of Ceres: From Solar System Evolution to Ocean World Science
- Geology, PhysicsThe Planetary Science Journal
- 2022
Dawn revealed that Ceres is a compelling target whose exploration pertains to many science themes. Ceres is a large ice- and organic-rich body, potentially representative of the population of objects…
Entrainment and Dynamics of Ocean‐Derived Impurities Within Europa's Ice Shell
- Environmental ScienceJournal of Geophysical Research: Planets
- 2020
Compositional heterogeneities within Europa's ice shell likely impact the dynamics and habitability of the ice and subsurface ocean, but the total inventory and distribution of impurities within the…
Heat Flux Constraints From Variance Spectra of Pluto and Charon Using Limb Profile Topography
- Geology, PhysicsJournal of Geophysical Research: Planets
- 2021
We derive a topography data set from images of Pluto and Charon that contain the body edge (i.e., limb profiles) which will help in understanding the comparative history of the binary system. We use…
Evolution of Pluto's Impact‐Deformed Ice Shell Below Sputnik Planitia Basin
- GeologyJournal of Geophysical Research: Planets
- 2022
Sputnik Planitia basin, the dominant surface feature of the dwarf planet Pluto, is located very close to the far point of Pluto‐Charon tidal axis. This position is currently believed to be a result…
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