. 24/7 Space News .
OUTER PLANETS
Ultima Thule in 3D
by Staff Writers
Laurel MD (SPX) Mar 11, 2019

Please visit here for 3D images

Cross your eyes and break out the 3D glasses! NASA's New Horizons team has created new stereo views of the Kuiper Belt object nicknamed Ultima Thule - the target of the New Horizons spacecraft's historic New Year's 2019 flyby, four billion miles from Earth - and the images are as cool and captivating as they are scientifically valuable.

The 3D effects come from pairing or combining images taken at slightly different viewing angles, creating a "binocular" effect, just as the slight separation of our eyes allows us to see three-dimensionally.

For the images on this page, the New Horizons team paired sets of processed images taken by the spacecraft's Long-Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) at 5:01 and 5:26 Universal Time on Jan. 1, from respective distances of 17,400 miles (28,000 kilometers) and 4,100 miles (6,600 kilometers), offering respective original scales of about 430 feet (130 meters) and 110 feet (33 meters) per pixel.

The viewing direction for the earlier sequence was slightly different than the later set, which consists of the highest-resolution images obtained with LORRI. The closer view offers about four times higher resolution per pixel but, because of shorter exposure time, lower image quality. The combination, however, creates a stereo view of the object (officially named 2014 MU69) better than the team could previously create.

"These views provide a clearer picture of Ultima Thule's overall shape," said mission principal investigator Alan Stern, from Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in Boulder, Colorado, "including the flattened shape of the large lobe, as well as the shape of individual topographic features such as the "neck" connecting the two lobes, the large depression on the smaller lobe, and hills and valleys on the larger lobe."

"We have been looking forward to this high-quality stereo view since long before the flyby," added John Spencer, New Horizons deputy project scientist from SwRI. "Now we can use this rich, three-dimensional view to help us understand how Ultima Thule came to have its extraordinary shape."


Related Links
New Horizons
The million outer planets of a star called Sol


Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly


paypal only
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal


OUTER PLANETS
SwRI-led New Horizons research indicates small Kuiper Belt objects are surprisingly rare
San Antonio TX (SPX) Mar 04, 2019
Using New Horizons data from the Pluto-Charon flyby in 2015, a Southwest Research Institute-led team of scientists have indirectly discovered a distinct and surprising lack of very small objects in the Kuiper Belt. The evidence for the paucity of small Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs) comes from New Horizons imaging that revealed a dearth of small craters on Pluto's largest satellite, Charon, indicating that impactors from 300 feet to 1 mile (91 meters to 1.6 km) in diameter must also be rare. The ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

OUTER PLANETS
Out of This World Auction Sponsored by ARISS

The science circling above us on the Space Station

The First Humans in Space

New Moon-Mars mission in progress at HI-SEAS habitat

OUTER PLANETS
China's new solid rocket booster completes test

German engineers produce and test 3D-printed rocket engine

N. Korea rocket site appears 'operational' again: US experts

D-orbit signs framework agreement with Firefly to acquire launch capacity

OUTER PLANETS
SWIM Project Maps Potential Sources of Mars Water

Major challenges to sending astronauts to search for life on Mars

Researchers outline goals for collecting and studying samples from Mars

Simulated extravehicular activity science operations for Mars exploration

OUTER PLANETS
China's lunar rover studies stones on moon's far side

China improves Long March-6 rocket for growing commercial launches

Seed of moon's first sprout: Chinese scientists' endeavor

China to send over 50 spacecraft into space via over 30 launches in 2019

OUTER PLANETS
How ESA helps launch bright ideas and new careers

ISRO to Launch Nearly 30 Satellites in March on New PSLV Rocket

GMV controls the first satellites of OneWeb's mega-constellation

ESA approves SMILE mission with the Chinese Academy of Sciences

OUTER PLANETS
Matrix could ensure vital copper supplies

Nanotechnology and sunlight clear the way for better visibility

Electrically-heated silicate glass appears to defy Joule's first law

It's all in the twist: Physicists stack 2D materials at angles to trap particles

OUTER PLANETS
Chances for Life Expand When Binary Stars Push Together

Kepler's First Exoplanet Candidate Confirmed, 10 Years After Launch

The case of the over-tilting exoplanets

Exiled planet linked to stellar flyby 3 million years ago

OUTER PLANETS
SwRI-led New Horizons research indicates small Kuiper Belt objects are surprisingly rare

Astronomers Optimistic About Planet Nine's Existence

New Horizons Spacecraft Returns Its Sharpest Views of Ultima Thule

Tiny Neptune Moon Spotted by Hubble May Have Broken from Larger Moon









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.