Public domain
Pluto Methane Snowcaps on the Edge of Darkness context
From the collection of NASA Image and Video Library. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
This area is south of Pluto's dark equatorial band informally named Cthulhu Regio, and southwest of the vast nitrogen ice plains informally named Sputnik Planitia. North is at the top; in the western portion of the image, a chain of bright mountains extends north into Cthulhu Regio. New Horizons compositional data indicate the bright snowcap material covering these mountains isn't water, but atmospheric methane that has condensed as frost onto these surfaces at high elevation.
NASA Image and Video Library’s own descriptionCredit linePluto Methane Snowcaps on the Edge of Darkness context. NASA/JPL, 2016-08-31. Public domain. ID: PIA21025.