Science Fact

Pluto’s got a washboard stomach. No really! “Washboard” and “fluted” areas of terrain are parallel ridges across the landscape. In this case, scientists think they were caused by glaciers that expanded and then retreated over the years. But don’t choose Pluto for your next ski destination. The “glaciers” in this case weren’t made of water ice and snow, but of NITROGEN ice. Considering that nitrogen only becomes a liquid at -40 degrees C (which is also -40 F!) and only becomes ICE at -210 C (-346 F), that’s probably too cold for your regular ol’ snowpants. Brr.

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