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Collection:
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NASA Image eXchange Collection
Collection
NASA Image eXchange Collection
Collection
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Title:
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Montage of Neptune and Triton
Title
Montage of Neptune and Triton
Title
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Description:
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This computer generated montage shows Neptune as it would appear from a spacecraft approaching Triton, Neptune's largest moon at 2706 km (1683 mi) in diameter. The wind and sublimation-eroded south polar cap of Triton is shown at the bottom of the Triton image, a cryovolcanic terrain at the upper right, and the enigmatic "cantaloupe terrain" at the upper left. Triton's surface is mostly covered by nitrogen frost mixed with traces of condensed methane, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide. The tenuous atmosphere of Triton, though only about one-hundredth of one percent of Earth's atmospheric density at the surface, is thick enough to produce wind-deposited streaks of dark and bright materials of unknown composition in the south polar cap region. The southern polar cap was sublimating at the time of the Voyager 2 flyby, as indicated by the irregular and eroded appearance of the edge of the cap. The polar frosts were sublimating because Triton's orbital and rotational motion causes the sun to shine directly on the polar cap for a period of several decades during Neptune's and Triton's long austral summer. Though the polar cap was undergoing "heat death", surface temperatures still were only about 38 K (-391 degrees Fahrenheit).
Description
This computer generated montage shows Neptune as it would appear from a spacecraft approaching Triton, Neptune's largest moon at 2706 km (1683 mi) in diameter. The wind and sublimation-eroded south polar cap of Triton is shown at the bottom of the Triton image, a cryovolcanic terrain at the upper right, and the enigmatic "cantaloupe terrain" at the upper left. Triton's surface is mostly covered by nitrogen frost mixed with traces of condensed methane, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide. The tenuous atmosphere of Triton, though only about one-hundredth of one percent of Earth's atmospheric density at the surface, is thick enough to produce wind-deposited streaks of dark and bright materials of unknown composition in the south polar cap region. The southern polar cap was sublimating at the time of the Voyager 2 flyby, as indicated by the irregular and eroded appearance of the edge of the cap. The polar frosts were sublimating because Triton's orbital and rotational motion causes the sun to shine directly on the polar cap for a period of several decades during Neptune's and Triton's long austral summer. Though the polar cap was undergoing "heat death", surface temperatures still were only about 38 K (-391 degrees Fahrenheit).
Description
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Date:
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05.31.1990
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Credit:
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facet_what:
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Earth
facet_what
Earth
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Moon
facet_what
Moon
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Sun
facet_what
Sun
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Polar
facet_what
Polar
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Voyager
facet_what
Voyager
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Voyager 2
facet_what
Voyager 2
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Neptune
facet_what
Neptune
facet_what
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facet_where:
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory
facet_where
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Triton
facet_where
Triton
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
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facet_when:
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05-31-1990
facet_when
05-31-1990
facet_when
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facet_when_year:
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1990
facet_when_year
1990
facet_when_year
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Media:
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IMAGE
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ID:
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PIA00340
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UID:
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SPD-NIX-PIA00340
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orignial url:
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orignial_url
orignial url
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