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FEATURES 22 October 2038: After a journey of over a billion miles to the outer solar system, the Centaurus spacecraft is on final approach. Centaurus crossed that billion miles from Earth to Chiron to make the first reconnaissance of this amazing outer solar system world. We found ways for Centaurus to fly by three or more Centaurs on the way to Chiron, sampling the diversity of the Centaur population in color, composition, size, activity, and ring systems. Soon, rings or dusty ringlike structures were also discovered around the Kuiper Belt planet Haumea and around another large Centaur, Chiron. [Extracted from the article]

GLO:ast/01dec19:20n1.jpg PHOTO (COLOR): A proposed Pluto orbiter, seen here flying above the canyon system that dominates the planet's large moon, Charon, could explore the Pluto system for at least two years. gl Pluto's largest moon, Charon, also revealed a puzzlingly reflective surface and neverbefore- seen dark polar caps seemingly made of methane that had escaped from Pluto's atmosphere. The resulting two-year tour of the Pluto system begins with a Charon gravity assist and a braking maneuver to complete the Pluto orbit injection. Because that breaks the tug of war between going wide in studying other dwarf planets and going deep in Pluto studies, we dubbed the resultant all-inone concept the "Gold Standard" Pluto- Kuiper Belt exploration mission. [Extracted from the article]

The article offers information on the observations by National Aeronautics and Space Administration's New Horizons spacecraft on the Kuiper Belt object (KBO). Topics discussed include the first discovered KBO in 1992 by David Jewitt and Jane Luu; the first Planetary Decadal Survey chaired by Michael Belto, aimed to explore the Pluto system and KBOs; and the discovery of Ultima Thule which turned out to be a contact binary created by gentle merging of two like sized bodies.

The article focuses on the planet Pluto explored by the U.S. National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) New Horizons spacecraft. Topics include the planet having four small moons, Nix, Hydra, Kerberos, and Styx which are as old as the planet, features within the nitrogen glacier Sputnik Planitia (SP) forming the western lobe such as recharge zones and glacial flow; and temporal changes on the planet's surface the ice moves sliding under some of the mountains SP abuts.

The article offers information regarding the results of exploration on the Pluto system using the New Horizons interplanetary space probe launched by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 2015. Topics discussed include the spotted Sputnik Planum (SP) on the Pluto's surface, the diameter of Charon, and the small satellites found in Pluto through the Hubble Space Telescope including Styx, Nix and Kerberos .

The article reports on findings from exploration of the dwarf planet Pluto with the New Horizons spacecraft of the U.S. National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) in July 2015. Topics discussed include atmospheric pressure at the planet's surface at 7 to 10 microbars, Sputnik Planum, an icy plain on Pluto, and discovery of mountains on Pluto. Other topics include features on Pluto's moon Charon and information on small satellites including Nix.

The article offers information on reconnaissance of the Pluto system including exploration of a Kuiper Belt planet and its attendant moons by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration's New Horizons spacecraft. Topics discussed include discovery of Pluto by astronomer Clyde Tombaugh, discovery of methane ice on Pluto by astronomers Dale Cruikshank, Carl Pilcher, and David Morrison, and discovery of angular momentum of the Pluto-Charon system.

The article offers information on the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) New Horizons probe and its arrival near Pluto on July 14, 2015. Topics discussed include the launch of the probe with Atlas V rocket on January 19, 2006, exploration of Pluto system, and exploration of Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs). Also mentioned are instruments carried by the probe, study of the Pluto's moon Charon, and receiving and analyzing the data of the journey.

Q WHAT CAUSES THE FORMATION OF SPIRAL ARMS IN GALAXIES? NASA, ESA, AND M. CHIABERGE (STSCI/ESA) gl A Located 8 billion light-years away, the galaxy 3C186 is home to an extremely bright galactic nucleus - the signature of an active supermassive black hole (SMBH). A galaxy is held together by the collective mass of its stars, gas, and dark matter, and any gravitational effects of the central SMBH are negligible with respect to that of the whole galaxy. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the Kuiper Belt, which is the cold edge of the planetary zone of Earth's solar system, and discoveries that led to an understanding of the solar system's origin and evolution. A historical overview of the discovery of the Kuiper Belt and its various objects is presented which includes the discovery of the dwarf planet Pluto and the asteroid Chiron. The impact of the discovery of the Kuiper Belt on the field of astronomy is also discussed.

The author reports on the findings of the United States National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) New Horizons spacecraft regarding the planet Jupiter. Descriptions of what the satellite saw on Jupiter are given in the article. The spacecraft studied Jupiter's atmosphere, which according to the article, is stormy. Other aspects of Jupiter were studied by the satellite including newborn ring clumps and volcanoes. INSET: SEVEN WAYS TO VIEW A PLANET.

The article states that the New Horizons spacecraft, which is bound for the dwarf planet Pluto, has achieved the closet look at the planet Jupiter and its moons in four years. New Horizons is the first space mission to Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. Jupiter's gravity will give New Horizons a speed boost.

The authors tell the story of their team's discovery of two small moons around Pluto. In 2004, the scientists were given access to the Hubble Space Telescope to search for the moons. They took several images during a single orbit for two days, so that they could reject cosmic-ray strikes that might mimic satellites in the images. Then, astronomer Max Mutchler of the Space Telescope Science Institute identified two faint satellite candidates that seemed to be moving around the same direction as Charon, Pluto's known moon.

Discusses the evolution and physical composition of comets. Overview of comet research since 1950; How the idea of comets as untouched relics of the solar system's early days has changed; How comets are damaged by cosmic and ultraviolet radiation and collide with other comets; Description of cometary evolution.

The article discusses how the discovery that planets around other stars are common will forever stand as one of the great achievements of astronomy in the 1990s. Given the run-of-the-mill nature of the Sun, I'd expected that the processes that led to the formation of planets in our solar system would naturally operate in other locales. What did surprise [and please] me, however, was learning that other solar systems would exhibit many exotic architectures. In our own solar system, we know the Sun is about halfway through its 12-billion-year "main sequence" phase. This phase will end when the Sun exhausts its supply of usable hydrogen fuel. To calculate what will happen to the outer solar system when the Sun goes red giant, we need to know the Sun's predicted mass, size, and luminosity over time. We also need a mathematical recipe for calculating planetary temperatures using several variables, including the planet's distance from the Sun, the Sun's luminosity, and the planet's properties. Information on the Sun's luminosity evolution is published in scientific literature. It's based on stellar evolution calculations that involve such criteria as nuclear fusion rates that control the rate of energy generation in the Sun's core, and the response of the Sun's outer layers to those internal processes. We can use luminosity projections of the red giant Sun to calculate the approximate surface temperature of planets around the Sun [or another star] knowing only the distance of the planet from its star and the reflectivity of the planet. For a common star like the Sun, the room temperature distance moves outward late in life from the 1 astronomical unit [AU] distance we known and love here on Earth to as far as 50 AU. Similar, but more extreme, behavior is exhibited in stars with higher masses. But the basic message remains unchanged: The habitable zone around each star will move outward as the star gets older, moving from the inner to the outer solar system.

The article provides observations about the possibility of Vulcanoids, asteroids inside Mercury's orbit which help to provide information about the history of the solar system. Some 19th-century astronomers thought they had spied Vulcan, named after the Roman god of fire and metallurgy, near the Sun during total solar eclipses. But photographic searches early in the 20th century firmly disproved the existence of Vulcan, which was purported to be a body hundreds or thousands of miles across. By contrast, the Vulcanoids -- a repeatedly hypothesized population of small asteroids only a few miles in diameter -- might really exist. Vulcanoids could offer vital insights into the bombardment history of the inner solar system and the composition of the solar nebula. The Vulcanoids would lie in the stable zone between 0.08 and 0.21 AU from the Sun. Solar radiation would create a drag on small objects located any closer, causing them to spiral into the Sun. The region beyond 0.2I AU would be swept clean by gravitational perturbations induced by Mercury.

Explores the contributions of astronomers Kenneth Edgeworth and Gerard Kuiper to the origin and architecture of the outer solar system. Historical information on the short-period comets; Description of the Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt; Details on the exploration of the Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt.

Profiles Gerard Peter Kuiper, known as the Dutch-American father of planetary astronomy. His achievements in the field; Educational background; Family life.

Discusses how the study of meteorites, lunar samples and planetary surfaces with sophisticated computer models led the planetary science community to converge on how planets are built. Gravitational scattering of protoplanets and its effects; Life of comets in the interstellar space; Distinguishing features of interstellar comets from solar system comets. INSET: When Oort Clouds Mingle: An Interstellar Comet Shower..

Features the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration's International Space Station. Features of the station; Research goals of the Space Station; Selection of the station's astronomical instruments.

The article debates on different definitions of the word planet. Planetary scientists define a planet as a substellar mass body which has never been through nuclear fusion and has enough gravitation to be round due to hydrostatic equilibrium, a definition presented at the 2017 Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. However, the International Astronomical Union's (IAU) definitional vote in 2006 recognized only eight planets in the solar system, excluding Pluto.

Reports that European and American scientists preparing for the joint European Space Agency/National Aeronautics Space Administration Rosetta mission held a workshop in December 1997 in Naples, Italy. Information on the Rosetta mission; Facts about the Wirtanen comet in the workshop.

Offers a look on the conference held by astronomer in Canary Island to tackle issues regarding Comet HaleBopp. Findings of Zdenek Sekanina on the comet with the use of Hubble Space Telescope; Conclusions of Sekanina; Comments from astronomers.

Discusses how astronomers modified missiles for a unique view at Comet Hale-Bopp. Changes in rocket science; Importance of detecting noble gas; Objective of launching extreme ultraviolet spectograph (EUV).

The article presents answers to questions on topics concerning Cepheid variable stars and astronomical distance, how astronomers can predict meteor showers, and ways in which professional observatories can prevent dew on mirrors and lenses.