Ebook: New Horizons: Reconnaissance of the Pluto-Charon System and the Kuiper Belt

The New Horizons mission provides the first in situ reconnaissance of the Pluto-Charon System and the Kuiper belt, arguably the last frontier of solar system exploration. This book describes the mission, its objectives, expected results, and instruments in articles written by the scientists and engineers most closely involved. The New Horizons mission is expected to return unique observations and discoveries, which will revolutionize our understanding of the formation of the solar system.

This volume is aimed at researchers and graduate students active in planetary science and space exploration, and all other potential users of data obtained by the instruments on board the New Horizons mission.

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The New Horizons mission is the first spacecraft to reconnoitre the Pluto-Charon System and the Kuiper belt. This pioneering mission explores the outer edge of the solar system, arguably the last frontier of planetary exploration. This book describes the mission, its objectives, expected results, payload and data products in articles written by the scientists and engineers most closely involved. This mission has the potential of revolutionizing our understanding of the formation of the solar system. It is of interest to all research scientists, graduate students, and educated laymen who are interested in the exploration of the solar system. _________"Новые горизонты" (англ. New Horizons) - космический аппарат НАСА (программа "New Frontiers"), предназначенный для изучения Плутона и его естественного спутника Харона. Запуск осуществлён 19 января 2006, с пролётом у Юпитера в 2007 и прибытием к Плутону в 2015. Пролетев мимо Плутона, аппарат, возможно, изучит ещё какой-нибудь объект пояса Койпера. Полная миссия New Horizons рассчитана на 15-17 лет. Данная книга представляет собой статьи, написанные участвующими в проекте учёными, в которых описываются миссия, её цели, ожидаемые результаты, установленные на аппарате приборы и т.д.