Aster › Space program › Nix
Nix
Position on the route: 78/130 · level needed 310 · journey (Mk0 engine) 59.1 h
By the numbers
| Diameter | ≈ 50 km |
|---|---|
| Year | 24.9 days |
| Distance | 48,700 km |
| Found | 2005, Hubble |
The story
Nix is one of Pluto’s small moons; Hubble found it with Hydra in 2005. It takes its name from the Greek goddess of night, Nyx; the initials of Nix and Hydra, N and H, also nod to New Horizons. About 50 km, long and irregular; the gravity of the Pluto–Charon pair drives it into chaotic tumbling.
New Horizons’ 2015 images showed a bright crater and water ice. The surface looks repainted by fresh craters.
Missions
- New Horizons (2015): flyby and imaging
Colony note
No colony; an easy ice outpost in the Pluto system.
What probes bring back
- A small moon of Pluto (≈50 km) found by Hubble in 2005; New Horizons (2015) showed a bright crater. It spins chaotically, tumbling.