Chasing Pluto

After nine years and 3 billion miles, PBS NOVA will finally get a close look at Pluto, but only if the New Horizons spacecraft can survive the final, treacherous leg of its journey through a dangerous field of debris. If it does, New Horizons is poised to make dramatic new discoveries, not just about Pluto, but about the vast realm of icy bodies lurking beyond Neptune, relics of the earliest days of the solar system’s formation. Back on Earth, the planetary scientists who have spent decades working on this mission anxiously await a signal from their spacecraft. If all goes well, we’ll see Pluto’s mysterious surface in unprecedented detail and learn new secrets about other alien worlds at the far limits of our solar system.Tune into the latest posts from NASA's New Horizons control room. Learn more about NOVA's Chasing Pluto.Incorporate these NOVA space resources into your classroom using  PBS Learning Media.