What is New Horizons

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New Horizons
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What is New Horizons?
New Horizons is a satellite designed by NASA to
study Pluto, its moons, and objects found beyond
Pluto in an area called the Kuiper Belt.
Because Pluto is so far away from earth, the
spacecraft being sent was unmanned.
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Pluto is one of the farthest objects from
Earth in our solar system. It is roughly 4
billion miles from Earth. It has never been
explored by satellite. What is known about Pluto
since it was discovered in 1930 has been learned
from telescopes.
The Pluto TelescopeThe 13 inch Abbott Lawrence
Lowell Telescope used by Clyde Tombaugh in his
discovery of Pluto Credit Lowell Observatory
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The Pluto Discovery PlatesThese photographic
plates were taken 6 days apart with the same 13
inch telescope Clyde Tombaugh used to discover
Pluto. The arrows point to the position of Pluto
on each of the two days. Credit Lowell
Observatory Archives
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Until recently, Pluto was thought to have one
moon called Charon.
Two new moons have now been discovered. They
have been named Nix and Hydra.
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This shows the discovery by the Hubble Space
Telescope of the two additional moons orbiting
Pluto.
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The New Horizons satellite was launched in
January, 2006, and will reach Pluto in 2015. It
was built by companies in San Antonio, Texas,
and Baltimore, Maryland.
Pluto was officially labeled the ninth planet by
the International Astronomical Union in 1930.
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An Atlas V rocket lifted the New Horizons
spacecraft on its way to Pluto. It is the fastest
moving satellite ever made.

• New Horizons 36,000 m.p.h.
• Earth Orbits the Sun 66,000 m.p.h.
• Space Shuttle 22,000 m.p.h.
• Blackbird Spy Plane 2,000 m.p.h.
• Jet Airplane 600 m.p.

Comparison Data
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What do you know about Pluto? Try to answer these
questions without looking back to the previous
slides.How long will it take the New Horizons
satellite to reach Pluto?
9 years
76 years
A
C
4 billion years
B
D
4 months
How many years has it been since Pluto has been
discovered?
9 years
76 years
A
C
4 billion years
B
D
4 months
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Why do you suppose scientists didnt know about
Plutos two other moons?
Satellites that had visited Pluto many years ago
didnt have good cameras.
A
The moons were too small to be seen by
telescopes. Once better telescopes were made, the
two new moons were able to be seen.
B
The moons just recently formed when an asteroid
hit Pluto and broke off chunks of rock.
C
Moons are constantly forming around all planets.
Any day now, we could have a new moon orbiting
earth.
D
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Why do you suppose these workers wear these
strange suits? Choose an answer that you think
makes the most sense.
Building a satellite must be done in a very cold
room and the workers have to wear snow suits.
A
These are space suits, and the workers are, after
all, working on a spacecraft.
B
It is important to keep the satellite perfectly
clean. These special suits make sure that no
hair, skin oil, or dirt gets on the satellite.
C
Everyone in NASA wears this type of uniform.
D
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Analyze the data on the graph to answer the
questions below.
Which is the fastest moving object?
New Horizons
Earth
Shuttle
Jet Plane
A
B
C
D
How much faster does the earth move than the New
Horizons?
30,000 m.p.h.
20,000 m.p.h.
10,000 m.p.h.
A
B
C
How much faster does the earth move compared to
the Space Shuttle?
3 times
2 times
4 times
5 times
A
B
C
D
Miles Per Hour
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This is a picture of the New Horizons satellite
in orbit around Pluto. Click on the best answer.
Why is this not a real picture?
The satellite hasnt reached Pluto yet.
A
B
A satellite can not take a picture of itself.
C
Pluto is too far away for a telescope on earth to
take this kind of picture.
D
All of the above answers are correct.
What is the bright object in the dark sky?
The north star
A
The sun
B
The brightest star in the night sky, Sirius
C
It is an object that scientists dont know about
yet.
D
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To learn more about Pluto or New Horizons, visit
your Media Center or Computer Lab!