Scientists using the James Webb Space Telescope have made a groundbreaking discovery on Pluto’s largest moon, Charon. For the first time, traces of carbon dioxide have been detected on the moon’s frozen surface, as revealed in a study published in Nature Communications.
Led by the Southwest Research Institute, the research team also found hydrogen peroxide, a compound not previously identified on Charon. These findings deepen our understanding of the moon’s icy composition and the complex chemical processes occurring in the distant Pluto system.
The formation of hydrogen peroxide is attributed to charged particles breaking down ice, releasing hydrogen and oxygen atoms that combine to form this highly reactive compound. The study suggests that solar wind and ultraviolet light from the distant Sun may be altering Charon’s surface.
Silvia Protopapa, the study’s lead author, noted that the detection of carbon dioxide was expected, but the discovery of hydrogen peroxide was surprising, as it had not been anticipated on Charon.
Charon, discovered in 1978 by James Christy and Robert Harrington, is Pluto’s largest moon, measuring roughly half the size of the dwarf planet at 1,200 kilometers in diameter. Its unique orbit with Pluto, where both bodies revolve around a central point, resembles a double dwarf planet system. This gravitational relationship, in part, led to Pluto’s reclassification as a dwarf planet in 2006 by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). The recent discoveries on Charon further unravel the mysteries of this remote and icy world.
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