Cracking the mystery of nitrogen ice dynamics on Pluto

Paris, France (SPX) Dec 17, 2021

Sputnik Planitia, a basin on the surface of Pluto1 filled with nitrogen ice, displays an astonishing pattern of flat polygons separated by narrow troughs. This feature is a sign of thermal convection within the icy mass that constantly renews its surface. Until now the driver of this process was a riddle. However, in their study published in Nature on 15 December 2021, researchers from the