Gallery | My Favorite Planet Pics | Pluto
I know, I know. Pluto's not a planet, blah blah blah. Well, a lot of people still hold Pluto dear in their hearts so that's a good reason to include it. And if you prefer, then think of this entry as being an example of a big Kuiper Belt object.
Either way, the image here was an awesome achievement: amateur astronomers on Earth were able to take pictures of Pluto that actually show its moon Charon! Given that the moon wasn't discovered until 1978, by a professional astronomer using a big telescope, getting this shot really was an incredible accomplishment. Amazingly, the telescope used for this image was a 35 cm (14"), far smaller than the one used to discover Charon, and in fact this image is far superior! We've come a long, long way in the past 30 years.
Related posts: Amateur astronomers capture Jupiter, Charon and Ten Things You Don't Know About Pluto
Charon image credit: Coelum Astronomia, Daniele Gasparri, and Antonello Medugno
