--- title: What Are Those Mysterious Spots on Pluto? description: Scientists are baffled. canonical: https://time.com/3945135/pluto-spots/ author: Tanya Basu article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-07-02T19:31:08.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:02:40.429Z article:section: Science og:title: What Are Those Spots on Pluto? og:description: Scientists are baffled og:url: https://time.com/3945135/pluto-spots/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0b618a8c2bf6fc12/6988597cf887dc0917e91363/pluto-charon-color-hemispheres.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1894 og:image:height: 1054 og:image:alt: Just-released images from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft, which is approaching Pluto, show the two hemispheres of the planet along with its moon, Charon. The right image shows the ring of spots that have mystified scientists. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: What Are Those Spots on Pluto? twitter:description: Scientists are baffled twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0b618a8c2bf6fc12/6988597cf887dc0917e91363/pluto-charon-color-hemispheres.jpg?branch=production ---  # Mysterious Spots on Pluto Intrigue Scientists  by [Tanya Basu](https://time.com/author/tanya-basu/)  ## Tanya Basu Jul 2, 2015 7:31 PM UTC  Just-released images from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft, which is approaching Pluto, show the two hemispheres of the planet along with its moon, Charon. The right image shows the ring of spots that have mystified scientists. Just-released images from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft, which is approaching Pluto, show the two hemispheres of the planet along with its moon, Charon. The right image shows the ring of spots that have mystified scientists.NASA  by [Tanya Basu](https://time.com/author/tanya-basu/)  ## Tanya Basu Jul 2, 2015 7:31 PM UTC Newly released images from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft show an unusual streak of spots on the dwarf planet Pluto. [Scientists aren’t quite sure what to make of the spots](http://www.nasa.gov/feature/new-horizons-color-images-reveal-two-distinct-faces-of-pluto-series-of-spots-that-fascinate), particularly because they are perfectly spaced apart along the equator and seem nearly identical in width. “It’s a real puzzle—we don’t know what the spots are, and we can’t wait to find out,” said Alan Stern, of the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colo. To get the images, scientists merged black-and-white pictures of Pluto and Charon, its largest moon, from the spacecraft’s Long-Range Reconnaissance Imager with color data. The resulting image shows Pluto and Charon in true color. The spots aren’t the only mystery, however. “Also puzzling is the longstanding and dramatic difference in the colors and appearance of Pluto compared to its darker and grayer moon Charon,” Stern said. Scientists are hoping that these questions might be answered as New Horizons approaches Pluto. ### PHOTOS: 20 Breathtaking Images of Earth From Space  Aleppo, Syria, May 26, 2013 – The Citadel of Aleppo – medieval fortified palace DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Belfast, Northern Ireland, Nov. 3, 2013 – “Wish,” a large-scale art work DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Utah, USA, April 22, 2013 – Colorado River DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Cuanza River, Angola, April 28, 2013 – Cambambe Dam DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Doha, Qatar, March 4, 2013 – Artificial island spanning nearly four million sq meters. DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Dunalley, Australia, Jan. 6, 2013 – fires, false color image (red = healthy vegetation) DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Australia, April 22, 2013 – Great Barrier Reef DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Gwadar coast, Pakistan Sept. 29, 2013 – new island created by earthquake in Pakistan DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Croatia, Feb. 16, 2013 – Galešnjak (Island of Love) DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Hong Kong, China May 9, 2013 – giant rubber duck DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Madang Province, Papua New Guinea, March 22, 2013 – Manam Volcano DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Namib Desert, Namibia, May 13, 2013 – Sossusvlie area DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Naples, Italy, Feb. 19 2013 – Mount Vesuvius DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Niger, Feb. 13, 2013 – Arlit Uranium Mine DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Schooner Cays, Bahamas, May 26, 2013 DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Sochi, Russia, March 17, 2013 – Site of 2014 winter Olympics DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Near the city of Sur, Oman, Feb. 13, 2013 – massive “green tide” DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Valencia, Spain, July 19, 2013 – Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia and Gulliver Park with an enormous fiberglass model of Lemuel Gulliver trapped DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Versailles, France, Aug. 20, 2013 – Palace of Versailles DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Xi'an, China, Sept. 24, 2013 – Shiyuan Park DigitalGlobe—Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3945135/pluto-spots/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3945135/pluto-spots/"},"headline":"Mysterious Spots on Pluto Intrigue Scientists","datePublished":"2015-07-02T19:31:08.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:02:40.429Z","description":"Scientists are baffled","url":"https://time.com/3945135/pluto-spots/","keywords":["Space","NASA","Science topic","Pluto","New Horizons"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0b618a8c2bf6fc12/6988597cf887dc0917e91363/pluto-charon-color-hemispheres.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tanya Basu","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tanya-basu/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0b618a8c2bf6fc12/6988597cf887dc0917e91363/pluto-charon-color-hemispheres.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Just-released images from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft, which is approaching Pluto, show the two hemispheres of the planet along with its moon, Charon. 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