|
Charon in Enhanced Color
- Click the image above for a larger view
- Full-Res JPEG (2000 x 2000) (318.4 kB)
- Full-Res TIFF (2000 x 2000) (5.7 MB)
Caption:
NASA's New Horizons captured this high-resolution enhanced color view of Charon just before closest approach on July 14, 2015. The image combines blue, red and infrared images taken by the spacecraft's Ralph/Multispectral Visual Imaging Camera (MVIC); the colors are processed to best highlight the variation of surface properties across Charon. Charon's color palette is not as diverse as Pluto's; most striking is the reddish north (top) polar region, informally named Mordor Macula. Charon is 754 miles (1,214 kilometers) across; this image resolves details as small as 1.8 miles (2.9 kilometers).
Background Info:
The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, designed, built, and operates the New Horizons spacecraft, and manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. The Southwest Research Institute, based in San Antonio, leads the science team, payload operations and encounter science planning. New Horizons is part of the New Frontiers Program managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
Cataloging Keywords:
| Name | Value | Additional Values |
|---|---|---|
| Target | Charon | Pluto |
| System | Pluto | Kuiper Belt |
| Target Type | Satellite | Dwarf Planet, KBO |
| Mission | New Horizons | |
| Instrument Host | New Horizons | |
| Host Type | Flyby Spacecraft | |
| Instrument | Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) | Multispectral Visible Imaging Camera (MVIC) |
| Detector | ||
| Extra Keywords | Color, Infrared | |
| Acquisition Date | ||
| Release Date | 2015-10-01 | |
| Date in Caption | 2015-07-14 | |
| Image Credit | NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute | |
| Source | photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19968 | |
| Identifier | PIA19968 | |
