PIA19690: A Dark Mystery on Charon
 Target Name:  Charon
 Is a satellite of:  Pluto
 Mission:  New Horizons
 Spacecraft:  New Horizons
 Instrument:  LORRI
 Product Size:  1024 x 768 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  Johns Hopkins University 
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA19690.tif (2.36 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA19690.jpg (56.13 kB)

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Original Caption Released with Image:

These recent images show the discovery of significant surface details on Pluto's largest moon, Charon. They were taken by the New Horizons Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) on June 18, 2015. The image on the left is the original image, displayed at four times the native LORRI image size. After applying a technique that sharpens an image called deconvolution, details become visible on Charon, including a distinct dark pole. Deconvolution can occasionally introduce "false" details, so the finest details in these pictures will need to be confirmed by images taken from closer range in the next few weeks.

Image Credit:
NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute

Image Addition Date:
2015-06-22