A Pluto thermal model

by: Hansen, C. J.; Paige, D. A.

ABSTRACT

The recent discovery of nitrogen on Pluto suggests that Pluto's volatile
cycles may be similar to those on Neptune's moon Triton. Here, we report
the first results of our efforts to apply a thermal model that we developed
to study the seasonal nitrogen cycle on Triton to the case of Pluto. The
model predicts volatile behavior as a function of time to calculate frost
deposit depth, polar cap boundaries, temperature of the frost and substrate,
and atmospheric pressure, assuming nitrogen frost deposits in solid-vapor
equilibrium with nitrogen in the atmosphere.

Lunar and Planetary Inst., Twenty-Fourth Lunar and Planetary Science Confe-
rence. Part 2 G-M p 599, N94-16173 03-91, 1994