Pluto, the only planet that routinely eludes amateur and even professional astronomers, is the destination for NASA's next major space exploration - the first trip ever to the mysterious, cold, dark edge of the solar system, DPA reported. With a launch window that extends until February 14, the New Horizons spacecraft and its 30 kilograms of scientific equipment could rocket on its way as early as 1824 GMT Tuesday toward the "ice dwarf" of Pluto. The 6.4-billion kilometre journey could take from 9 to 14 years. The earlier it departs, the more it can use a gravity assist as it passes Jupiter, boosting its speed to 75,000 kilometers an hour, the National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA) said last week. Pluto was only discovered 75 years ago, a shining faint icy disc that even the Hubble telescope can't get a clear picture of. It's moon, Charon, half its size, was found in 1978. Just in May, two smaller moons were discovered rotating around the solar system's only "binary" planet - so called because Charon's gravity pulls the two bodies into an orbit around a center of mass that is outside Pluto's surface. --SP 15 19 Local Time 12 19 GMT
