NASA Hubble to Search Beyond Pluto for New Target for Horizons Mission

NASA scientists are taking a look beyond Pluto. Using the Hubble Space Telescope, researchers are planning to search for an object the Pluto-bound NASA New Horizons mission could visit after its flyby of Pluto in July 2015.

The researchers plan to target a small area of the sky in search of a Kuiper Belt object (KBO) for the spacecraft to visit. The Kuiper Belt is a large debris field of icy bodies that are left over from the solar system's formation about 4.6 billion years ago. Thus far, a KBO has never been studied in extensive detail since the belt is so far from the sun. This makes it an intriguing target for scientists.

More specifically, Hubble will scan an area of sky in the direction of the constellation Sagittarius. This should help researchers locate objects orbiting within the Kuiper belt. Once the scientists pinpoint these object, they will then decide which one to target.

That said, spotting a KBO won't be easy. While Hubble is powerful enough to see galaxies near the horizon of the universe, a typical KBO is no larger than a Manhattan Island and is as black as charcoal. This means that finding one for the New Horizons' mission may not be easy.

"The planned search for a suitable target for New Horizons further demonstrates how Hubble is effectively being used to support humankind's initial reconnaissance of the solar system," said Matt Mountain, director of the Space Telescope Science Institute, in a news release. "Likewise, it is also a preview of how the powerful capabilities of the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope will further bolster planetary science. We are excited by the potential of both observatories for ongoing solar system exploration and discovery."

The findings could give scientists a new look at KBOs which could reveal a bit more about the beginnings of our universe.