X-ray detection sheds new light on Pluto

New Horizons scientists were particularly interested in learning more about the interaction between the gases in Pluto's atmosphere and the solar wind. The spacecraft itself carries an instrument designed to measure that activity up-close -- the aptly named Solar Wind Around Pluto (SWAP) -- and scientists are using that data to craft a picture of Pluto that contains a very mild, close-in bowshock, where the solar wind first "meets" Pluto (similar to a shock wave that forms ahead of a supersonic aircraft) and a small wake or tail behind the planet.