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Top 5 Elements on Pluto : (Bulk Composition) TOP 5 ELEMENTS ON (BulkPLUTO Composition) 30% 14% 4% 8% 9% Credit: NASA 1 8 12 14 26 H O Mg Si Fe Hydrogen Oxygen Magnesium Silicon Iron Sources: McKinnon et al. (2017). Icarus, Vol. 287. Kinnunen & Saikkonen (1983). Bulletin of the Geological Society of Finland, Vol. 55. PLUTO DR. CARLY HOWETT Southwest Research Institute Pluto is a unique, small, isolated world close to the edge of our solar system. Two-thirds of its bulk composition is rock with the remainder being water ice, but the type of rock is unknown. In 2015 NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft fl ew past Pluto and fi nally provided humanity with resolved surface compositional information. The results showed that Pluto’s surface composition is dominated Dr. Carly Howett is the Assistant Director by exotic volatile ices such as nitrogen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and of the Department of Space Studies at the methane as well as water Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, ice. While there is nothing Colorado. She is mainly interested in inherently special about understanding the surface properties of these ices, Pluto’s unique icy worlds, including Saturn’s icy moons, environment (incredibly cold Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids, Europa, and surface temperatures, long Kuiper belt objects (including Pluto and seasons, highly elliptical Charon). She is the Deputy Principal orbit, and nitrogen-carbon Investigator of the Ralph instrument on monoxide-hydrocarbon gas/ New Horizons, an Instrument Scientist on haze-fi lled atmosphere) means NASA’s newly selected Lucy mission, and these ices create surface a Co-Investigator on two other NASA missions: Cassini and Europa Clipper. features seen nowhere else in On New Horizons she helps plan observations and works on calibrating our solar system. These unique Ralph’s Multispectral Visible Imaging Camera (MVIC) and analyzing results. Exotic ices (bluish-white areas) stand-out in this false- conditions are challenging our She assisted with the production of color images of Pluto, Charon, and Kuiper color image from the New Horizons spacecraft of the understanding of what these belt object 2014 MU69. While on the Cassini team she was responsible for Sputnik Planum region of Pluto. ices are capable of. Arguably planning the Composite Infrared Spectrometer (CIRS) observations of Saturn’s Credit: NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI. the most exciting surface icy moons, as well as analyzing the returned data. Howett has discovered compositional and geological discovery is that nitrogen ice is currently fl owing thermal anomalies dubbed “Pac-Men” on three of Saturn’s icy moons, and on Pluto’s surface, both as glaciers and as a large, continent-sized ice sheet. helped constrain active Enceladus’ heat fl ow. NASA’s Lucy and Europa Clipper There is also evidence of ammonia-rich surface fl ows on an area (informally) missions are still in the instrument development stages. As such, Howett is known as Virgil Fossae; these surface fl ows are believed to be indicators of heavily involved in optimizing instrument design and constructions for the recent, short-lived cryovolcanism. On Pluto, water ice is so hard it provides upcoming missions to a jovian Trojan asteroid and Jupiter’s icy moon Europa the “bedrock” of the surface and is even capable of forming mountains. These respectively. Howett is constantly working to create equality for all in science mountains stand over 6 kilometers high, sporting methane ice caps. by promoting best practices, allyship, and targeted training. She is particularly passionate about outreach to promote science to girls and other minorities. She regularly gives talks in schools, in the community, and on TV/radio. Howett is also the liaison between the Southwest Research Institute and the Denver Pop Culture Con, to provide a variety of science outreach for the Con. Founded at the height of the Apollo program in 1968, the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI) is an The year 2019 marks the 150th anniversary of Dmitri Mendeleev’s development of the Periodic intellectual leader in lunar and planetary science. LPI’s mission is to advance understanding of the System and has been proclaimed the “International Year of the Periodic Table of Chemical solar system by providing exceptional science, service, and inspiration to the world. The research Elements” (IYPT2019). carried out at LPI supports NASA’s eff orts to explore the solar system. www.iypt2019.org www.lpi.usra.edu.
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