Strange lumpy terrain on Pluto unlike anything previously observed in the solar system indicates that giant ice volcanoes were active relatively recently on the dwarf planet, scientists said on Tuesday.
The observation, which was made by analyzing images taken by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft, suggests that Pluto's interior was hotter much later than previously thought, according to a new study in the Nature Communications journal.
Image: Rather than shooting lava into the air, ice volcanoes ooze a 'thicker, slushy icy-water mix or even possibly a solid flow like glaciers', says scientist Kelsi Singer Isacc HERERA, Kelsi SINGER NASA/JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY/APPLIED PHYSICS LABORATORY/SOUTHWEST RESEARCH INSTITUTE/AFP
