Pluto Is Ready For Its Close-Up

No, not that one, this one. The "New Horizons" spacecraft made it's closest pass by Pluto about an hour or two ago, after a 10 year journey. After frantically snapping pictures like a tourist in a bus driving through Times Square, later today it will turn and start sending those back to Earth - and four hours after being sent, those pictures will show up. I think that's pretty awesome.
The NASA website with more than you'd ever want to know (but which will have the new photos this evening) is:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/newhorizons/main/index.html

The picture below is from the other day, as the New Horizons probe was approaching the planet (or whatever they call it now, although I think after this research comes in, Pluto will be reinstated).

nohero

Jul 14, 2015 at 5:08am

What I think is interesting is that the scientists "know" that the spacecraft went by, because that's what the calculations say. They launched it 10 years ago, aiming for the spot that they expected Pluto to be 10 years after it set out. Not only that, but they aimed it for a spot that would be between Pluto and its moon Charon.

It's like throwing a football through a tire, except that the tire is over four and a half billion miles away, and your child in eighth grade will be out of college by the time the football goes through the tire.

It's the greatest "Doug Flutie-style" "Hail Mary" pass ever.