NASA captured the surface of the “ninth planet” full of ice volcanoes

According to Sci-NewsIce volcanoes are volcanoes that have the same structure as normal volcanoes on Earth, but instead of forming from molten rock, they are created by freezing liquids such as ammonia which is water.

The “unbelievable” structures were well captured by ‘s New Horizons spacecraft NASAshows that the topographic layers in the heart-shaped Southwestern lagoon of Sputnik Planitia on Pluto go through various ages: there are regions that are relatively ancient, but there are also areas that carry surface layers. very young face.

The image of the spacecraft returning easily shows that this is an area with very few impact craters, which is less affected by external influences.

Its young structures were all created by Pluto himself. The research team led by Dr. Kelsi Singer from the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI – USA) analyzed and concluded that this terrain must be created by the “ice volcano” theory, which has long existed in science. planet.

These are the first glacial volcanoes to be officially identified in practice, and perhaps Pluto is also the only place in the solar system to possess it.

“The calculated volume of a large structure known as Wright Mons is similar to that of Manua Loa in Hawaii, one of the largest volcanic systems on Earth,” the team wrote in the paper published in the journal Nature. Nature Communications.

Generating the current terrain would require several eruption sites and a large amount of material to create a great ice-volcanic system. Ice volcanism in this region must have been relatively recent and indicates that Pluto’s internal structure has more residual heat or heat than previously predicted to drive volcanism.

This analysis will probably be good news for NASA, because geological activity is one of the important factors for a planet to have life. In the solar system, only Earth and Jupiter’s moon Io have been confirmed to be geologically active.

Meanwhile, NASA is one of the agencies that is always fighting to restore Pluto’s “ninth planet” status, arguing that it may possess the famous heart-shaped underground ocean, even is a special form of life. This dwarf planet was considered the ninth planet until the International Astronomical Union (IAU) “demoted” it in 2006.