A stable orbit can be established for an orbiter in the Pluto-Charon system
the verdict
SUPPORTED
the evidence backs this
refutedsupported
the weight of evidence
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Peer-reviewed literature and encyclopedic data confirm that multiple natural satellites maintain stable, near-circular orbits within the Pluto-Charon system.
Four small moons--Styx, Nix, Kerberos and Hydra--follow near-circular, near-equatorial orbits around the central 'binary planet' comprising Pluto and its large moon, Charon. New observational details of the system have emerged following the discoveries of Kerberos and Styx. Here we report that Styx, Nix and Hydra are tied together by a three-body resonance, which is reminiscent of the Laplace resonance linking Jupiter's moons Io, Europa and Ganymede. Perturbations by the other bodies, however, inject chaos into this otherwise stable configuration. Nix and Hydra have bright surfaces similar to that of Charon. Kerberos may be much darker, raising questions about how a heterogeneous satellite system might have formed. Nix and Hydra rotate chaotically, driven by the large torques of the Pluto-Charon binary.
Resonant interactions and chaotic rotation of Pluto’s small moons | Nature Skip to main content Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript. Advertisement Abstract Four small moons—Styx, Nix, Kerberos and Hydra—follow near-circular, near-equatorial orbits around the central ‘binary planet’ comprising Pluto and its large moon, Charon.
New observational details of the system have emerged following the discoveries of Kerberos and Styx. Here we report that Styx, Nix and Hydra are tied together by a three-body resonance, which is reminiscent of the Laplace resonance linking Jupiter’s moons Io, Europa and Ganymede. Perturbations by the other bodies, however, inject chaos into this otherwise stable configuration. Nix and Hydra have bright surfaces similar to that of Charon. Kerberos may be much darker, raising questions about how a heterogeneous satellite system might have formed. Nix and Hydra rotate chaotically, driven by the large torques of the Pluto–Charon binary.
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A. et al. New satellite of (134340) Pluto: S/2011 (134340). IAU Circ. 9221 , (2011). Buie, M. W., Grundy, W. M. & Tholen, D. J. Astrometry and orbits of Nix, Kerberos, and Hydra. Astron. J. 146 , 152 (2013). Article ADS Google Scholar Brozović, M., Showalter, M. R., Jacobson, R. A. & Buie, M. W. The orbits and masses of satellites of Pluto. Icarus 246 , 317–329 (2015). Article ADS Google Scholar Steffl, A. J. et al. New satellite of (134340) Pluto: S/2011 (134340). IAU Circ. 9221 , (2011). Lee, M. H. & Peale, S. J. On the orbits and masses of the satellites of the Pluto-Charon system. Icarus 184 , 573–583 (2006). Article ADS Google Scholar Buie, M. W. et al.
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The amplitude of the libration is stable when Kerberos is massless, but shows erratic variations otherwise. Extended Data Figure 3 Spectral signatures of Kerberos. We merge Pluto and Charon into a single central body and integrate Φ ( t ) for Styx in exact resonance. The fast Fourier transform (FFT) power spectrum for M K = 0 (light grey) obscures the same spectrum obtained when M K is nominal. Unobscured spikes are caused by Kerberos. a , The impulses of Kerberos passing each moon create a signature at the synodic period and its overtones: S SK = 53.98 days (green); S NK = 109.24 days (red); S KH = 203.92 days (blue).
Copy shareable link to clipboard Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative Access through your institution Buy or subscribe Editorial Summary The orbital dance of Pluto and its moons With NASA's New Horizons probe fast approaching Pluto for its flyby on 14 July, Mark Showalter and Douglas Hamilton present new results from the Pluto system and offer some predictions about what the spacecraft might observe. Pluto's four small moons — Styx, Nix, Kerberos and Hydra —follow near-circular, near-equatorial orbits around the central 'binary planet' comprising Pluto and its large moon, Charon.
In an analysis of Hubble Space Telescope images, Showalter and Hamilton demonstrate that Styx, Nix and Hydra are tied together by a three-body resonance. Perturbations by the other bodies inject chaos into this otherwise stable configuration so that Nix and Hydra rotate chaotically, driven by the large torques of the Pluto–Charon binary. Nix and Hydra have bright surfaces similar to that of Charon. Kerberos may be much darker. show all Associated content Pluto leads the way in planet formation Scott J.
Pluto (minor-planet number 134340) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the Sun. It is the largest known trans-Neptunian object by volume by a small margin, but is less massive than Eris. Like other Kuiper belt objects, Pluto is made primarily of ice and rock and is much sma
Pluto (minor-planet number 134340) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the Sun. It is the largest known trans-Neptunian object by volume by a small margin,…
Pluto has five known natural satellites. The largest and closest to Pluto is Charon. First identified in 1978 by astronomer James Christy, Charon is the only moon of Pluto that may be in hydrostatic equilibrium. Charon's mass is sufficient to cause the barycenter of the Pluto–Charon system to be outside Pluto. Beyond Charon there are four much smaller circumbinary moons. In order of distance from Pluto they are Styx, Nix, Kerberos, and Hydra. Nix and Hydra were both discovered in 2005, Kerberos was discovered in 2011, and Styx was discovered in 2012. The satellites' orbits are circular (eccentricity < 0.006) and coplanar with Pluto's equator (inclination < 1°), and therefore tilted approximately 120° relative to Pluto's orbit. The Plutonian system is highly compact: the five known satellites orbit within the inner 3% of the region where prograde orbits would be stable.
The Pluto–Charon system is one of the few in the Solar System whose barycenter lies outside the primary body; the Patroclus–Menoetius system is a smaller example, and the Sun–Jupiter system is the only larger one. The similarity in size of Charon and Pluto has prompted some astronomers to call it a double dwarf planet. The system is also unusual among planetary systems in that each is tidally locked to the other, which means tha
Pluto (minor-planet number 134340) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the Sun. It is the largest known trans-Neptunian object by volume by a small margin, but is less massive than Eris. Like other Kuiper belt objects, Pluto is made primarily of ice and rock and is much smaller than the inner planets. Pluto has roughly one-sixth the mass of the Moon and one-third of its volume. Originally considered a planet, its status was changed when astronomers adopted a new definition of the word with new criteria.
Pluto has a moderately eccentric and inclined orbit, ranging from 30 to 49 astronomical units (4.5 to 7.3 billion kilometres; 2.8 to 4.6 billion miles) from the Sun. Light from the Sun takes 5.5 hours to reach Pluto at its orbital distance of 39.5 AU (5.91 billion km; 3.67 billion mi). Pluto's eccentric orbit periodically brings it closer to the Sun than Neptune, but a stable orbital resonance prevents them from colliding.
Pluto has five known moons: Charon (the largest and the diameter of which is just over half that of Pluto), Styx, Nix, Kerberos, and Hydra. Pluto and Charon are sometimes considered a binary system because the barycenter of their orbits (that is, their center of mass) does not lie within either body, and they are tidally locked. New Horizons was the first spacecraft to visit Pluto and its moons, making a flyby on July 14, 2015, and taking detailed measurements and observations.
Pluto was discovered in 1930 by Clyde W. Tombaugh, making it the first known object in the Kuiper belt. It was immediately hailed as the ninth planet, but its planetary status was questioned when it was found to be much smaller than expected. These doubts increased following the discovery of additional objects in the Kuiper belt starting in the 1990s, particularly the more massive scattered disk object Eris in 2005. In 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) formally redefined the term planet to exclude dwarf planets
Pluto has five known natural satellites. The largest and closest to Pluto is Charon. First identified in 1978 by astronomer James Christy, Charon is the only moon of Pluto that may be in hydrostatic equilibrium. Charon's mass is sufficient to cause the barycenter of the Pluto–Charon system to be outside Pluto. Beyond Charon there are four much smaller circumbinary moons. In order of distance from Pluto they are Styx, Nix, Kerberos, and Hydra. Nix and Hydra were both discovered in 2005, Kerberos was discovered in 2011, and Styx was discovered in 2012. The satellites' orbits are circular (eccentricity < 0.006) and coplanar with Pluto's equator (inclination < 1°), and therefore tilted approximately 120° relative to Pluto's orbit. The Plutonian system is highly compact: the five known satellites orbit within the inner 3% of the region where prograde orbits would be stable.
The Pluto–Charon system is one of the few in the Solar System whose barycenter lies outside the primary body; the Patroclus–Menoetius system is a smaller example, and the Sun–Jupiter system is the only larger one. The similarity in size of Charon and Pluto has prompted some astronomers to call it a double dwarf planet. The system is also unusual among planetary systems in that each is tidally locked to the other, which means that Pluto and Charon always have the same hemisphere facing each other — a property shared by only one other known system, Eris and Dysnomia. From any position on either body, the other is always at the same position in the sky, or always obscured. This also means that the rotation period of each is equal to the time it takes the entire system to rotate around its barycenter.
Pluto's moons are hypothesized to have been formed by a collision between Pluto and a similar-sized body, early in the history of the Solar System. The collision released material that consolidated into the moons around Pluto.
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