Guide with both general and statistical data. ... Little is known about Pluto's atmosphere, but it probably consists primarily of nitrogen with some carbon monoxide and methane. It is extremely tenuous, the surface pressure being only a few microbars. Pluto's atmosphere may exist as a gas only when Pluto is near its perihelion;
www.nineplanets.org/pluto.html www.nineplanets.org/pluto.html
This is a picture of dry ice (frozen CO2) sublimating (turning to a gas). Click on image for full size version ( 40K GIF Because the orbit of Pluto is so strange, Pluto is sometimes close enough to the sun for the ices on its surface to s...
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/pluto/P_atm_evol...
What Pluto & Charon are made of ... Pluto's atmosphere is roughly 90% Nitrogen, and 10% other complex molecules such as methane. The composition of Pluto's atmosphere is very similar to the Earth's which is also 80% Nitrogen.
www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/pluto/pluto_composition... www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/pluto/pluto_composition.html
Yes, that's right, Pluto does have an atmosphere. Well, the Pluto atmosphere is not the ocean of air we have here on Earth, but Pluto's thin envelope of gases ... ; Yes, that's right, Pluto does have an atmosphere. Well, the Pluto atmosphere is not the ocean of air we have here on Earth, but Pluto's thin envelope of gases...
www.universetoday.com/guide-to-space/pluto/plutos-atmos... www.universetoday.com/guide-to-space/pluto/plutos-atmosphere/
    Pluto is certainly frigid, but new research has revealed its atmosphere is a bit warmer. Astronomers using the European Southern ... Astronomers using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope have found unexpectedly large amounts of methane in Pluto's atmosphere, which evidently helps it stay about...
www.universetoday.com/2009/03/02/plutos-atmosphere-boas... www.universetoday.com/2009/03/02/plutos-atmosphere-boasts-methane-warmer-temps/
In 1988 a team at the University of Southern Queensland participated in an international project, that discovered the atmosphere surrounding the planet Pluto. The project was organised by G.L. Blow of Carter Observatory, Wellington, N.Z. A simultaneous observation was made by the Kuiper Airborne Observatory.
www.sci.usq.edu.au/staff/house/pluto/ www.sci.usq.edu.au/staff/house/pluto/
Opportunities to examine Pluto's atmosphere are rare. ... Pluto's tenuous atmosphere was first detected during an occultation in 1985, and another in 1988 provided more details. Occultations occurred in July and August last year, and two groups report observations of those events ... The recent expansion of Pluto's atmosphere;
www.nature.com/nature/links/030710/030710-6.html
Boston - Jul 14, 2003 - Pluto's atmosphere is expanding even as it continues on its long orbit away from the sun, a team of astronomers from MIT, Boston University, Williams College, Pomona College, Lowell Observatory and Cornell University report in the July 10 issue of Nature. ... At the rate of Pluto's orbit,
www.spacedaily.com/reports/Plutos_Atmosphere_Is_Expandi... www.spacedaily.com/reports/Plutos_Atmosphere_Is_Expanding.html
When Pluto is closer to the sun in its orbit, the warmth from the sun heats up the frozen ices of nitrogen, methane and carbon monoxide on Pluto's surface. These ices vaporize and form a temporary atmosphere. When Pluto moves farther from the sun, the atmosphere freezes and falls back onto Pluto's surface.
coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/cosmic_kids/AskKids/pluto_a... coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/cosmic_kids/AskKids/pluto_atmosphere.shtml
New findings by astronomers from Lowell Observatory and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) indicate that Pluto's atmosphere is undergoing a cooling trend and other global changes.
www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=9033