Flyby Missions to Pluto
Voyager 1
Voyager 1 is a spacecraft that flew by the giant planets in 1979 and 1981. The spacecraft in the photo above, which was taken by NASA, is now the furthest man-made probe ever to enter interstellar space.
Scientists from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California launched this probe in 1977. As of 2014, it has been confirmed to be almost 100 Astronomical Units (Earth - Sun distance) from the Sun. In forty thousand years, Voyager 1 will pass within 1.6 light years of the star Gliese 445, a 10th magnitude star in the constellation of Camelopardalis, The Giraffe. This will be the first time, should Voyager 1 survive, that a man-made object will pass by a star outside our solar system.
The Pluto Connection
Due to the fortunate alignment of the four gas giant planets that occurs every 177 years, Voyager 2 was able to pass by these worlds in a span of only twelve years.
The Trajectories of Pioneer and Voyager
Voyager 1 had the option to go past the 9th planet. The original idea was to pass by Jupiter in 1979, perform a flyby of Saturn in 1981, and continue to Pluto in 1986.
The idea of a Pluto flyby was dismissed by to the scientists at JPL, who chose to have a flyby of Saturn's largest moon Titan instead. Due to this last-minute decision for a Titan flyby, Pluto was no longer aligned for a visit from Voyager 1. The idea of flyby to Pluto would have to wait until New Horizons.
New Horizons
Artist Conception of the New Horizons Spacecraft at Pluto
In 2006, NASA launched the New Horizons probe. It is the first official probe to ever visit Pluto. In March of 2007, New Horizons visited Jupiter and took pictures of the largest planet and its innermost moon, Io.
New Horizons at Jupiter
Jupiter and Io from New Horizons
This picture above was taken by New Horizons as it passed by Jupiter and its moon Io. A volcanic eruption can be seen in this image on Io's northern rim.
The largest and smallest planet in our Solar System were in perfect alignment upon New Horizon's arrival at Jupiter. The gravitational assist from the largest planet in our solar system enabled the probe to be in direct alignment with Pluto! It would only take New Horizons eight years to reach Pluto from Jupiter's position in 2007!
New Horizons's Photos
Pluto from New Horizons in 2006
Photo of Pluto and Charon taken from New Horizons in 2013
The spacecraft took this photo in July of 2013. Yet the probe was still about 550,000,000 miles away from Pluto.
Pluto's Surface
Image of Pluto's Surface, Taken from New Horizons, 2015
Courtesy of NASA
Map of Pluto
Image of a Map of Pluto, Taken from New Horizons, 2015
Courtesy of NASA
Pluto's Heart
Image of Pluto's Heart, Tombaugh Regio, Taken from New Horizons, 2015
Courtesy of NASA
Pluto and Charon
Image of Pluto and Charon, Taken from New Horizons, 2015
Courtesy of NASA
In Memory
Alan Stern, the mission team leader, requested that the engineers put a canister on the spacecraft. This canister contains the ashes of the Pluto's discoverer, Clyde Tombaugh.
New Horizons's Container
The container includes the inscription: "Interred [sic] herein are remains of American Clyde W. Tombaugh, discoverer of Pluto and the solar system's 'third zone'. Adelle and Muron's boy, Patricia's husband, Annette and Alden's father, astronomer, teacher, punster, and friend: Clyde W. Tombaugh (1906–1997)".
Artist's Conception of New Horizions above Pluto Courtesy of NASA
This is an artist's conception of New Horizons At Pluto in July of 2015.
The yellow star between the probe and Charon is our Sun!