Astrophysicists Unravel the Mystery of Pluto's Heart-Shaped Feature

A recent study reveals that Pluto's iconic heart-shaped structure, Sputnik Planitia, formed from a slow, oblique collision with a planetary body, challenging previous theories of a subsurface ocean.

An international team led by the University of Bern used numerical simulations to demonstrate that Pluto's heart-shaped feature, Sputnik Planitia, was formed by an oblique impact with a planetary body roughly the size of Arizona.
The impact, which occurred early in Pluto's history, resulted in the unique teardrop shape of Sputnik Planitia, located near the equator of the dwarf planet.
Researchers found no evidence of a subsurface ocean, suggesting instead that the impact created a local mass excess, explaining the feature's equatorial position without the need for a denser underlying ocean.
The study, published in Nature Astronomy, utilizes advanced simulation techniques to provide new insights into the geological and internal structure of Pluto.
The findings could have broader implications for understanding the formation and evolution of other celestial bodies in the Kuiper Belt.