Pluto’s icy “heart” is the distant world’s most recognizable feature. The region, composed of two distinct lobes, is shaped by what looks like a giant impact basin the size of Texas.
The heart’s western lobe, brought into clear focus by the New Horizon’s spacecraft, consists of a 600-mile-wide (1,000 kilometers) ice plain called Sputnik Planitia, which is the largest glacier in the solar system.
Meanwhile, the eastern lobe of Pluto’s heart is a sprawling region of highlands that holds many nitrogen-rich glaciers that extend into the basin.
In this weeks episode of Infinity & Beyond, host Abigail Bollenbach will take you for a quick dive into Pluto’s icy heart. Stay up-to-date on the latest space and astronomy news at astronomy.com/news. And make sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
