Comparative Planetology of Kuiper Belt Dwarf Planets Enabled by the Near-Term Interstellar Probe

The article provides extensive information on the formation, evolution and structure of the solar system. It also discusses the planets of the solar system and the dwarf planets. Its noted that the Kuiper objects are the celestial bodies which belongs to the solar system. NASA's New Horizons spacecraft is currently helps studying four objects in the Kuiper belt. There is also talked about TTauri type stars. The article discusses the future transformation of the Sun from a Red Giant to a White Dwarf. Key words: Kuiper Belt, T Tauri Star, Dwarf Planets, Planet X

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THE DENSITY OF MID-SIZED KUIPER BELT OBJECT 2002 UX25 AND THE FORMATION OF THE DWARF PLANETS

The Astrophysical Journal ◽

10.1088/2041-8205/778/2/l34 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 778 (2) ◽

pp. L34 ◽

Cited By ~ 37

Author(s):

M. E. Brown

Keyword(s):

Kuiper Belt ◽

Kuiper Belt Object ◽

Dwarf Planets

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DYNAMICAL HEATING INDUCED BY DWARF PLANETS ON COLD KUIPER BELT–LIKE DEBRIS DISKS

The Astrophysical Journal ◽

10.1088/2041-8205/811/2/l21 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 811 (2) ◽

pp. L21 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

M. A. Muñoz-Gutiérrez ◽

B. Pichardo ◽

M. Reyes-Ruiz ◽

A. Peimbert

Keyword(s):

Kuiper Belt ◽

Debris Disks ◽

Dwarf Planets

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Interstellar Probe: A Mission to the Heliospheric Boundary and Interstellar Medium for the Next Decade

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-3308 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Pontus Brandt ◽

Ralph McNutt ◽

Elena Provornikova ◽

Carey Lisse ◽

Kathleen Mandt ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Interstellar Medium ◽

Space Exploration ◽

Launch Vehicles ◽

Applied Physics ◽

Gravity Assist ◽

Interstellar Clouds ◽

The Galaxy ◽

Historic Data ◽

Near Term ◽

Interstellar Probe

An Interstellar Probe mission to the Very Local Interstellar Medium (VLISM) would bring new scientific discoveries of the mechanisms upholding our vast heliosphere and directly sample the&#160;unexplored Local Interstellar Clouds that our Sun is moving through in relatively short galactic timescales. As such, it would represent Humanity's first explicit step in to the galaxy and become perhaps NASA's boldest step in space exploration.&#160;Such a mission&#160;has been discussed and studied since 1960,&#160;but the stumbling block has often been propulsion. Now this hurdle has been overcome by the availability of new and larger launch vehicles. An international team of scientists and experts are now&#160;progressing towards the final year of a NASA-funded study led by The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL)&#160;to develop&#160;pragmatic example mission concepts for an Interstellar Probe with a nominal design lifetime of 50 years. Together with the Space Launch System (SLS) Office at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center,&#160;the team&#160;has analyzed&#160;dozens of launch configurations and demonstrate that asymptotic speeds in excess of 7.5 Astronomical Units (AU) per year&#160;can be achieved using existing or near-term propulsion stages with a powered or passive Jupiter Gravity Assist (JGA).&#160;These speeds are more than twice that of the fastest escaping man-made spacecraft to date, which is Voyager 1 currently at 3.59 AU/year. An Interstellar Probe would therefore reach&#160;the Termination Shock (TS) in less than 12 years and cross the Heliopause into the VLISM&#160;after&#160;about 16 years from launch.In this presentation we provide an overview and update of the study, the science mission concept, discuss the compelling discoveries that await, and the associated example science payload, measurements and operations ensuring a historic data return that would push the boundaries of space exploration by going where no one has gone before.

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Interstellar Probe: Pushing the Frontier of Space Science

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-19605 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Pontus Brandt ◽

Kathleen Mandt ◽

Elena Provoronikova ◽

Casey Lisse ◽

Kirby Runyon ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hubble Space Telescope ◽

Kuiper Belt ◽

Electrical Power ◽

International Studies ◽

The Sun ◽

Gravity Assist ◽

Trade Offs ◽

First Time ◽

Interstellar Probe

An Interstellar Probe beyond our heliosphere in to the largely unexplored interstellar medium (ISM) would be the furthest and boldest step in robotic space exploration ever taken. A dedicated payload of in-situ and remote sensing instruments would uncover the new regime of physics at work in the heliospheric boundary region and offer the first external view of the global heliosphere that is currently missing in the family portrait of all other types of astrospheres observed. Beyond about 400 AU the Probe would reach the ISM and for the first time begin its sampling of the properties of the local interstellar cloud (LIC) that our Sun and neighboring star systems are immersed in.An Interstellar Probe has been discussed since around 1960 in several NASA and international studies. The compelling science objectives have remained almost unchanged and are focused on understanding the plasma physics in the interaction region between the heliosphere and the ISM. Their importance have been amplified by the recent unexpected findings by the Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft that are nearing their end of life at less than 150 AU from the Sun. Remote observations in Energetic Neutral Atoms (ENAs) by the NASA IBEX and Cassini missions have made the remarkable discoveries of ENA emission morphologies that have come as a complete surprise and still lack a satisfactory explanation. Hubble Space Telescope observations have now also made it clearer that the Sun is about to exit the LIC and perhaps already has, which is a unique event of astronomical scales that an Interstellar Probe could explore in-situ for the first time. In addition to these top-priority objectives, contributions of unprecedented science value to planetary sciences and astrophysics are possible including flybys of at least one Kuiper Belt Object, in-situ and remote observations of the dust debris disk, and the extra-galactic background light.Here we review the outstanding questions and current state of understanding of the global heliosphere, the ISM and what planetary and astrophysics augmentations can offer. We summarize the compelling science case for an Interstellar Probe, including a range of possible science payloads and the associated operation scenarios. The results stem from the study of a Pragmatic Interstellar Probe currently underway, funded by NASA, and led by The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory with active participation from a large, international team of scientists and engineers. The study focuses on finding realistic mission architectures among a trade space of propulsion options, trajectories, risks and reliability challenges. The study considers operation out to 1000 AU, a survival probability of 85% over 50 years and electrical power of no less than 400 W at the beginning of mission. Over twice the speed of Voyager 1 (the fastest spacecraft currently) has already been achieved in the design using conventional propulsion, with a direct inject to Jupiter followed by a Jupiter Gravity Assist. In order to provide input requirements to the mission study, several possible payloads with different mass allocations and associated mission requirements, trade-offs and risks have been identified.

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Enabling a Near-Term Interstellar Probe with the Space Launch System

AIAA Propulsion and Energy 2019 Forum ◽

10.2514/6.2019-4048 ◽

2019 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Michael V. Paul ◽

Ralph L. McNutt ◽

Robert W. Stough ◽

David Hitt ◽

Steven R. Vernon ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Space Launch ◽

Near Term ◽

Interstellar Probe

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Atmospheres and surfaces of small bodies and dwarf planets in the Kuiper Belt

EPJ Web of Conferences ◽

10.1051/epjconf/201009021 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

pp. 267-276 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

E.L. Schaller

Keyword(s):

Kuiper Belt ◽

Small Bodies ◽

Dwarf Planets

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Geologically Diverse Pluto and Charon: Implications for the Dwarf Planets of the Kuiper Belt

Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences ◽

10.1146/annurev-earth-071720-051448 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 49 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Jeffrey M. Moore ◽

William B. McKinnon

Keyword(s):

Kuiper Belt ◽

Internal Heat ◽

Annual Review ◽

Publication Date ◽

Dwarf Planets ◽

Subsurface Ocean ◽

Extensional Tectonic ◽

Climate Evolution ◽

The Many

Pluto and Charon are strikingly diverse in their range of geologies, surface compositions, and crater retention ages. This is despite the two having similar densities and presumed bulk compositions. Much of Pluto's surface reflects surface-atmosphere interactions and the mobilization of volatile ices by insolation. Abundant evidence, including past and present N2 ice glacial activity, implies that Pluto has undergone substantial climate evolution. An ancient impact basin contains a massive, convectively overturning N2 ice reservoir, whose position and surrounding tectonics suggest a subsurface ocean. Aligned blades of methane ice hundreds of meters tall, found only at high altitude, likely cover much of Pluto's low latitudes and may be a consequence of obliquity variation driven volatile migration. Multikilometer-high possible cryovolcanic constructs and apparent fissure eruptions indicate relatively late endogenic activity on Pluto. Pluto's range of surface ages is extreme, whereas Charon's surface, while old, displays a large resurfaced plain and globally engirdling extensional tectonic network attesting to earlier endogenic vigor. ▪ The vast N2 ice sheet Sputnik Planitia controls Pluto's atmosphere and climate, comparable in importance with the role of Greenland and Antarctica on the climate of Earth. ▪ Spectacular evidence for erosion such as now-unoccupied glacial valley networks implies a vigorous early climate, and more widespread N2 ice glaciation, on Pluto. ▪ Geological activity on both bodies requires or required sustained internal heat release and suggests a past (Charon) or present (Pluto) ammoniated, subsurface ocean. ▪ The varieties of geologic experience witnessed on Pluto and Charon should play out among the many and varied dwarf planets of the Kuiper belt Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Volume 49 is May 28, 2021. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.

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