Located within the Kuiper Belt, at a distance exceeding 5 billion kilometres from Earth, this distinct vantage point offers the potential to provide novel understandings regarding these remote planets' atmospheres and energetic processes.
NASA's upcoming venture, New Horizons, is poised to embark on a revolutionary expedition. The spacecraft is primed to conduct observations of the ice giants Uranus and Neptune while stationed in the solar system's outer reaches.
Positioned within the Kuiper Belt, at a staggering distance surpassing 5 billion kilometres from Earth, this unparalleled viewpoint holds the potential to yield novel revelations regarding the atmospheric conditions and energetic processes of these far-flung planets.
New Horizons and the Hubble Space Telescope will focus on scrutinising the planets' atmospheres and the transmission of heat originating from their solid inner cores.
Leading up to these observations, the team behind the mission is extending a cordial invitation to amateur astronomers across the globe, welcoming them to partake in this momentous occasion. This gesture gives them a remarkable chance to make a meaningful contribution to space science.
The New Horizons team will amass these images along with accompanying data. Moreover, the Hubble-generated pictures will be accessible to the public by the latter part of September via the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes (MAST).
Envisaging the acquisition of images of Uranus and Neptune from the spacecraft by the conclusion of 2023, this collaborative endeavour stands as a noteworthy advancement in space exploration. It harnesses the potency of worldwide engagement to enrich further our comprehension of the solar system's outer reaches.
