New “Kiss-and-Capture” Theory Explains Pluto’s Formation of Largest Moon, Charon
A new theory suggests that Pluto’s largest moon, Charon, may have been captured billions of years ago through a unique “kiss-and-capture” collision. According to this theory, two icy bodies in the Kuiper Belt collided, briefly merging into a spinning “cosmic snowman” before separating, ultimately forming the Pluto-Charon system. The process, which lasted about 10 hours, offers a fresh perspective on moon formation in the distant regions of the solar system, challenging previous theories.
The study, published in Nature Geoscience, proposes that the interaction between Pluto and Charon occurred in the Kuiper Belt, a region filled with icy bodies on the solar system’s edge. Adeene Denton, a planetary researcher at the University of Arizona and NASA postdoctoral fellow, led the team behind the research. The collision was driven by material strength rather than fluid dynamics, as both bodies are made of ice and rock.
This “kiss-and-capture” process differs from typical planetary collision scenarios, where bodies either permanently merge or completely separate. Instead, the two bodies briefly merged before separating, with Charon moving into a stable orbit around Pluto.
Charon, which is about half the size of Pluto and 12% of its mass, is unusually large compared to most moons. Its formation is believed to have resulted from a significant collision, similar to the theory behind Earth’s moon’s creation. The study suggests that this process could also explain the formation of other large moons in the Kuiper Belt, such as those of Eris and Orcus.
The research team plans to further investigate Charon’s tidal evolution to test and confirm the “kiss-and-capture” theory.
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