Why Pluto Might Still Have A Liquid Ocean
Scientists are investigating evidence that Pluto may harbor a liquid ocean beneath its frozen surface despite its extreme distance from the Sun. Data from NASA's New Horizons mission challenges previous assumptions that the dwarf planet would have frozen solid billions of years ago.
Why it matters
Understanding the potential for liquid water on distant bodies expands our knowledge of planetary evolution and the conditions necessary for life.
Why Pluto Might Still Have A Liquid Ocean Pluto is so cold that nitrogen and methane freeze into solid ice, yet scientists think a liquid ocean may still be hiding beneath its surface. Temperatures on the dwarf planet can plunge to around -364°F (-220 °C), creating a landscape where substances that drift through Earth's atmosphere become rock-hard. For decades, researchers assumed a world this small and this far from the Sun would have frozen solid billions of years ago.
The article presents scientific theories and data without political or social bias.
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