Plutos Far Side

TL;DR

This paper provides the first comprehensive analysis of Pluto's far side using New Horizons data, revealing diverse terrains, impact craters, and geological features that complement the understanding of Pluto's global geology.

Contribution

It offers the first integrated overview of Pluto's far side terrains, highlighting new geological features and potential causal relationships with the near side.

Findings

Presence of widespread bladed deposits

Identification of a large impact crater on the far side

Complex lineations antipodal to Sputnik Planitia

Abstract

The New Horizons spacecraft provided near global observations of Pluto that far exceed the resolution of Earth-based data sets. Most Pluto New Horizons analysis hitherto has focused on the encounter hemisphere of Pluto (i.e., the antiCharon hemisphere containing Sputnik Planitia). In this work, we summarize and interpret data on the far side (i.e., the non-encounter hemisphere), providing the first integrated New Horizons overview of the far side terrains. We find strong evidence for widespread bladed deposits, evidence for an impact crater about as large as any on the near side hemisphere, evidence for complex lineations approximately antipodal to Sputnik Planitia that may be causally related, and evidence that the far side maculae are smaller and more structured than the encounter hemisphere maculae.