A new analysis of images captured by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft has found evidence that liquid nitrogen may be reaching Pluto's surface through cracks in its icy crust. The study, based on observations from the spacecraft's 2015 flyby, focuses on dark geological features near the northern edge of Sputnik Planitia, a vast frozen nitrogen glacier on the dwarf planet.

Researchers believe the findings point to recent movement of liquid beneath Pluto's surface. According to the study published in the Planetary Science Journal on July 31, some dark patches and lines visible in the northern section of Sputnik Planitia could occasionally become wet as liquid nitrogen reaches the surface. The findings provide evidence of geological activity occurring beneath Pluto's frozen exterior.

Sputnik Planitia is a massive glacier made largely of frozen nitrogen and covers an area larger than the combined size of the US states of Texas and Oklahoma. When New Horizons photographed its northern region in 2015, scientists identified city-sized convection cells along with thin dark lines and broader dark patches. These patterns raised the possibility that liquid had previously moved across parts of the glacier.

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The latest research suggests the liquid may not be arriving through precipitation. Pluto's extremely cold conditions and thin atmosphere make liquid nitrogen rainfall impossible. Instead, researchers propose that nitrogen in liquid form could exist beneath the surface and occasionally move upward through fractures in the icy crust, creating wet areas on the glacier.

The study brought together specialists in Pluto's planetary science and researchers who study glaciers on Earth. The surface patterns observed on Sputnik Planitia have similarities to features found on terrestrial glaciers where liquid can influence the appearance of the ice. Researchers used these comparisons to investigate how similar processes might occur under Pluto's very different environmental conditions.

New Horizons principal investigator and study lead author Alan Stern noted that Pluto continues to reveal unexpected features. The research suggests that liquid may have reached the dwarf planet's surface relatively recently and raises the possibility of a previously unrecognised type of geological feature that can change over time. The findings add to evidence that Pluto is not a static, frozen world but remains geologically active in ways scientists are still working to understand.

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