Pluto blushes red

Newly released images show mysterious color change

View a video of Pluto’s changing hue at the bottom of this article.

SHIFTED HUE The most detailed view of the surface of Pluto, assembled from Hubble images taken of different sides of Pluto in 2002 and 2003, shows that the dwarf planet had reddened, and researchers aren’t sure why. The mosaic also shows a bright spot (center of middle image) unusually rich in carbon monoxide that has persisted on Pluto since the 1950s.