Nitrogen Methane Dominate Icy Surface Of Eris

[cygonaut]

Nitrogen Methane Dominate Icy Surface Of Eris

Illustration of Eris (formerly Xena)

"By combining the astronomical data and laboratory data, we found about 90 percent of Eris's icy surface is made up of nitrogen ice and about 10 percent is made up of methane ice, which is not all that different from Pluto," said David Cornelison, coauthor and physicist at Missouri State University.

Discovered in 2003, Eris hit the astronomical map with the largest diameter of any known dwarf planet, consequently unseating its smaller neighbor Pluto from "official" planet to dwarf planet status.

The recent findings will directly enhance NASA's New Horizons spacecraft mission, currently scheduled to fly by Pluto in 2015, lending greater value to the continued research of Eris and Pluto.

 

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Nitrogen_Methane_Dominate_Icy_Surface_Of_Eris_999.html