TORONTO, July 8, 2015 – After more than nine years of cruising through space, the New Horizons spacecraft will encounter Pluto in the closest approach ever on July 14. It is the first investigation of its kind of Pluto, now classified as a Dwarf Planet, and is considered an important milestone. What will scientists see and learn? York University experts can discuss the significance of the New Horizons mission, what they expect the spacecraft to find and what it means for the future of space research.

“We will have the opportunity to re-write the textbook on Pluto after this flyby as we reveal images and environmental details about Pluto that are unavailable from Earth based measurements. Scientists have not had the opportunity to examine up close this type of object before,” says York University Senior Lecturer Paul Delaney of the Department Physics & Astronomy.

“New Horizons gave us new data that will allow us to better understand the more distant regions of our home in space, the Solar System. The more we know about home, the more insights we will gain about the environments for planets orbiting other stars.”

The following experts are available:

• Paul Delaney, senior lecturer, available by phone, skype, FaceTime or email and is 13.5 hours ahead of Eastern Daylight Time.
• Jesse Rogerson, York U physics and astronomy PhD candidate, available by phone, email, in-person or in York U’s media studio for double-ended broadcast interviews.

The New Horizons spacecraft launched Jan. 19, 2006 from Cape Canaveral, Florida, and flew by Jupiter a little more than a year later on Feb. 28, 2007.  New Horizons cruised toward Pluto in a state of “hibernation” until December 2014 when it woke up in preparation for its science encounter. It will approach and fly by Pluto on July 14, 2015. If NASA approves it, the spacecraft will continue on to explore Kuiper Belt Objects well beyond Pluto, enhancing our understanding of this distant region of our Solar System.

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Media contact:

Sandra McLean, Media Relations, 416-736-2100 ext. 22097 / sandramc@yorku.ca