Planet Pluto and satellite Charon. What kind of planet is Charon?

In the solar system there are planets sosmall, that they are called - dwarfs. This includes Pluto. But even small planets have satellites. Her biggest companion is Charon. But he is not the only one of his kind. There are others. Of course, they are not so great, but they also have great significance.

In this article, we'll look at the features of Pluto and find out what Charon, the satellite of this planet, is. Also, let's talk about the rest, smaller satellites.

Planet Pluto

Until 2006, Pluto was on a par with the main planets of the solar system and was a full-fledged unit.

Now he was given the name of a dwarf planet, after which they began to believe that he was the largest object of a dark disc-shaped zone.

Once it became clear to scientists that Pluto is notA unique object of its environment, which are all other planets located in the solar system. And that more than one such object can be detected if we investigate the space behind the orbit belonging to Neptune. And soon a certain body, called Eris, was actually discovered. It was a trans-neptune object, which can be compared with Pluto. After this discovery, it became clear that in the world, in fact, there is no definition of the planet. And in 2006, the definition was approved, which includes three positions. According to him, those cosmic objects, which correspond to only two of the three positions, are called the dwarf planet. Pluton is one of them.

He got his name thanks to the girleleven years old, who decided that the name of the god of the underworld would be suitable for a distant, probably cold and dark planet, and told her grandfather about it. And already the grandfather passed the desire of the granddaughter to the observatory, where he was finally approved.

In 2006, the planet Pluto was launched,called "New Horizons". It was the month of January. This device flew to the planet for a distance of twelve thousand kilometers and has accumulated a large amount of information about it. All these data are gradually transferred to scientists. This is due to the too slow transfer of information to such significant distances.

Features of the planet

Pluto has the form of an ideal sphere. This discovery was a surprise, as well as the discovery on the surface of various forms of relief.

Moreover, the planet has extendedsites that are devoid of impact craters completely. Also known is the fact that the glaciers of Pluto on its surface are distributed unevenly, but it is still unclear why.

From the Earth, the planet Pluto and the satellite Charon, likethe remaining small satellites are removed quite strongly. Therefore, they are not very well studied. There is an assumption that the surface of this planet has a base of rocky composition, which is covered with water ice, as well as frozen methane and nitrogen. It is the products that result from the photodissociation of methane that color the planet in red.

Rotating in its orbit, which is far from the shapecircle, Pluto can either very close to the Sun, or, conversely, move away a great distance. As it approaches, melting of glaciers and the formation of an atmosphere around the planet, which consists of methane and nitrogen. The further the planet moves away from the Sun, the less the atmosphere becomes, and in the end there remains only a small haze which, if you look at it with the naked eye, has a red tinge. This is due to the fact that the glaciers again freeze.

Satellites of Pluto. Charon and the minor companions of the planet

Pluto has its own natural satellites in the number of five. The largest satellite Charon was discovered in 1978. Two smaller satellites, named Nykta and Hydra, were seen in 2005.

Next was Kerber. Its discovery was due to the Hubble telescope in 2011. Finally, in 2012, scientists discovered the presence of Pluto's fifth satellite, which was called Styx. All names of companions in one way or another refer to the underground realm of Greek mythology.

Charon is a satellite of the planet Pluto

Charon got its name in honor of the carrier of the souls of dead people from the myths of Ancient Greece. Opened by his astrophysicist from the United States James Christie. It happened in the Naval Observatory in 1978.

This satellite is very large. Its size is equivalent to half the size of Pluto itself. The distance separating it from the planet, which he accompanies, is almost twenty thousand kilometers. It's about like from London to Sydney.

Charon is a satellite of Pluto, which many scientistsbegan to be considered a small component of the binary system of planets. He was even given the name Pluto-1. The periods of rotation of Pluto and Charon are the same. Due to this phenomenon they are turned to each other always by the same side. This phenomenon has even got its name - tidal castle.

Surface and composition of the satellite

The satellite Charon differs in its composition fromPluto. Unlike the planet, it is covered not by nitrogen, but by water ice. This is due to the fact that the temperature of its surface is below zero at 220 degrees Celsius. But also to the reasons for this composition is the fact that Charon is not so massive as to hold volatile compounds. The color of the satellite is more neutral, grayish. According to the existing theory, Charon was formed from the fragments of Pluto itself that had been in orbit. Also, many scientists believe that the atmosphere of Pluto and Charon is connected.

Nepta Satellite

Charon is the largest satellite of Pluto, but there are others. One of them is Nykta. The discovery of this satellite was announced in 2005, on October 31. His name is due to the goddess of eternal night.

Orbit, on which the satellite is located, is circular. There is as yet no information on the exact dimensions of the Nect, but it is presumably less than Hydra. This is indicated by a darker surface color.

Hydra

If you carefully review the existing images,then you can see that Hydra is located in the same plane as the satellite Charon. The distance between Pluto and Hydra is about 65 thousand kilometers. The exact size of this satellite is not available. Scientists only suggest that the size of its diameter is in the range of 52 to 160 kilometers.

Hydra's surface is brighter than that of Necta. Approximately 25%. This indicates that its reflectivity is higher, and therefore, the size is larger. The satellite received its name in honor of the monster from Greek mythology, which has one hundred goals.

Kerber and Styx

The fourth satellite of Pluto is calledKerber, also received in honor of the mythical character of the underworld. Prior to the opening of the fifth satellite was considered the smallest. Its estimated diameter is 13-34 kilometers.

The discovery of Kerber was made thanks tothe Hubble Space Telescope. The orbit, along which the fourth satellite spins, is located between the orbits of Nikta and Hydra. Produces circulation around the planet for thirty-one days.

The smallest size is the fifth Styx satellite. Presumably the size of its diameter is between 10 and 25 kilometers. Rotation of this satellite produces in orbit, located between the orbits of Charon and Nikta. His resonance with Charon is one to three. Its name is due to the river, which in the myths of Ancient Greece separates the two worlds - living and dead. Was also discovered thanks to the "Hubble" in June 2012.

In this article, many questions were considered. We found out which satellite Charon is, what are its features, sizes and composition. Now to the question: "Charon is a satellite of which planet?" - you will confidently answer: "Pluto". By the way, one of the theories of the origin of satellites around Pluto suggests that they all formed as a consequence of the collision of this planet with some large object from the Kuiper belt. Unfortunately, for today it is practically impossible to learn anything more about these amazing objects. After all, Pluto is not only too far from the Earth, but it does not have a very good reflectivity.

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