Pluto may not be a frozen, static world. New analysis of NASA's New Horizons mission has turned up the first hints that liquid nitrogen has flowed across the dwarf planet's surface in the recent past. The evidence comes from dark markings on the enormous Sputnik Planitia glacier, which appear to line up with channels where liquid nitrogen could have pushed upward through fractures in the ice.
Those dark features are consistent with liquid nitrogen rising from deep beneath the glacier and then spreading out on the surface. The researchers stress that this is the first time such flow has been identified, suggesting Pluto's interior still holds enough heat to drive geological activity. Computer models further support the idea, showing how liquid nitrogen could travel through cracks and pool in the observed patterns.
The findings add a fresh layer to our picture of Pluto, once seen as a cold relic. While the source does not detail how recent the flows are, the presence of liquid nitrogen on the surface implies that the dwarf planet remains more lively than previously assumed.