Pluto, the smallest planet, has remained enigmatic since its discovery by astronomer Clyde Tombaugh in 1930. Pluto is the only planet in our Solar System not yet viewed close-up by spacecraft, and given its great distance and tiny size, study of the planet continues to challenge and extend the skills of planetary astronomers. Most of what we know about Pluto we have learned since the late 1970s. Many of the key questions about Pluto and its satellite Charon await the close-up observation of a space flight mission. Beyond Pluto lies the recently-discovered Edgeworth-Kuiper Disk of "ice dwarfs" or minor planets. Its history may be connected with the Earth's atmosphere and biosphere.

To address these questions, NASA is now developing a robotic reconnaissance mission to Pluto-Charon. The Pluto mission is being conceived using lightweight advanced-technology hardware components and advanced software technology. The Pluto mission plan calls for launch when this technology is ready with a goal of encounters with Pluto and Charon around 2010 or later.

If the encounter with Pluto is successful, the mission may be extended to encounter one or more icy, asteroid-sized objects in the Kuiper Disk.

CL-95-1463

	Mission at a Glance
	Pluto-Kuiper Express Trajectories
	NASA Announcement of Opportunity

Pluto-Kuiper Express Table of Contents

NASA/JPL Outer Planets/Solar Probe Project
This page was last updated/reviewed on November 30, 1999
Comments about this page can be emailed to the editor.