"Charon is about half the size of Pluto itself, making it the largest satellite relative to the planet it orbits in our Solar System. Pluto and Charon are often referred to as a 'double planet'." ...

This week, uncover some of the oldest ice on Earth, follow a dinosaur highway, learn how Pluto sealed the capture of its moon Charon with a “kiss,” and more.

Pluto can be thought of as being part of a binary system with its biggest satellite, Charon (pictured). Scientists have long thought that this system formed as the result of a collision between ...

Scott J. Kenyon and Benjamin C. Bromley, 'A Pluto–Charon Sonata: Dynamical Limits on the Masses of the Small Satellites', The Astronomical Journal, Vol 158, No. 2 (2019) https://iopscience.iop ...

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Scientists have discovered a new type of planetary collision called “kiss-and-capture,” where Pluto and proto-Charon briefly ...

While Charon is currently listed as a satellite or moon by the International Astronomical Union (IAU), consideration is being given to it perhaps being classified as a dwarf planet in its own right, ...

where it eventually coalesced into a large natural satellite. But, just like with Earth’s moon, the details are fuzzy. “It goes, something hit Pluto, question mark question mark question mark ...

"And this collision scenario supports the formation of other moons, such as Pluto's four other tiny, lumpy satellites," she said. This new model tells us how the impact may have happened but not ...

Charon is large in size relative to Pluto, and is locked in a tight orbit with the dwarf planet. A new simulation suggests how it ended up there. By Jonathan O’Callaghan Some 4.5 billion years ...

Famously, Pluto no longer met the criteria and was ... the moon was demoted to a satellite, and the sun got promoted. This ...