The Pluto System After New Horizons

Abstract

The New Horizons (NH) flyby of the Pluto–Charon binary planet and its system of four small surrounding satellites in mid-2015 revolutionized our knowledge of this distant planet and its moons. Beyond providing rich geo-logical, compositional, and atmospheric data sets, NH demonstrated that Pluto has been surprisingly geologically and climatologically active throughout the past 4+ Gyr and that the planet exhibits a remarkably complex range of atmospheric phenomenology and geological expressions that rival Mars in their richness. In contrast, Pluto's large, planet-sized satellite Charon, though also geologically complex, has no detected active surface volatiles, has no detectable atmosphere, has much more muted colors, has lower albedo, and exhibits only ancient terrains. Pluto's system of four small satellites orbiting outside of Charon is itself dynamically complex and geologically interesting. Here, we review both what was known about the Pluto system before NH and what it has taught us about the Pluto system specifically and, by inference, other small planets in the Kuiper Belt. We go on to examine the natural next steps in Kuiper Belt exploration.