Beyond Pluto
Nasa's New Horizons probe notches up another historic first - the first ever Kuiper belt fly-by and an encounter with a chunk of rock and ice four billion miles from Earth.
On 1 January 2019, Nasa's New Horizons probe notched up another historic first: the first ever Kuiper belt fly-by. Its target was 2014 MU69, a chunk of ice and rock about four billion miles (approximately 6.4 billion kilometres) from Earth, dubbed Ultima Thule, a Latin phrase meaning a distant, unknown region. It is the most distant fly-by in history, and it is believed the data New Horizons gathers will shed new light on the solar system's early days. Chris Lintott reports from the John Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Maryland to bring the latest news and pictures from this extraordinary mission.
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The Mission so far
Duration: 02:37
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What is the Kuiper Belt?
Duration: 03:15
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Starguide: January 2019
Duration: 03:17
Music Played
Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes
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00:03Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Thomas Beecham
At The Castle Gate From Pelleas and Melisande (The Sky At Night) (1955)
Credits
| Role | Contributor |
|---|---|
| Presenter | Chris Lintott |
| Presenter | Pete Lawrence |
| Executive Producer | Steve Crabtree |
| Presenter | Maggie Aderin-Pocock |
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