Pluto could have a far more viscous interior than previously thought after scientists say giant dome-like formations on the space rock’s surface were once recently active cryovolcanoes or icy volcanoes.
FILE - Scientists with NASA’s New Horizons mission have assembled this highest-resolution color view of one of two potential cryovolcanoes spotted on the surface of Pluto by the New Horizons spacecraft in July 2015.After years of research, scientists now hypothesize that giant dome-like formations that were first photographed by NASA’sScientists guessed these cryovolcanoes expelled "slushy" ice water as opposed to molten lava.
This built-up heat within Pluto could be how these icy volcanoes produced viscous material and spewed out icy water or slush, Kelsi Singer, senior research scientist at the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado and lead author of the study, told FOX TV Stations. body than previously believed.
"Besides just being a fun fact, this means that Pluto had to have more heat in its interior than we expected. In order to produce volcanoes, you need the material to be mobile. It is really cold on Pluto, the average surface temperature is 40K or -390 Fahrenheit. So some internal heat is needed even for icy materials to make them mobile," Singer added.Researchers said the location of these icy volcanoes is just at the tip of the Sputnik Planitia.
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