New Horizons is on a Fast Track to Pluto
The New Horizons spacecraft will cross the entire 3 billion mile span of the solar system and conduct flyby studies of Pluto and Charon in 2015. NASA's most powerful launcher, the Atlas 5, rocketed the spacecraft away from Earth at a record 36,000 miles per hour. At that speed, and with a "gravity slingshot assist" it will get from Jupiter in 2007, the spacecraft will take over 9 years to reach Pluto.
Comments:
If the calculated speed of travel is correct (36,000 mph)and consistent, it will take 77,952 hours to travel 2,806,272,000 miles and reach Pluto(assuming it arrives in June, 2015). Not quite 3 billion miles, but you get the picture. <br><br>.......I have way too much free time at work.<br><br>David
Hello David.<br><br>When you again have some free time at work, you might want to redo your calculations. After New Horizons flies by Jupiter, the planet's gravity assist will speed the spacecraft to approximately 50,000 mph. <img class='' src='http://new.astromart.com/astromart/javascripts/sceditor/emoticons/wink.png' alt='wink' title='wink'/> <br><br>Doug
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