NASA's New Horizons spacecraft was not able to enter Pluto's orbit due to the momentum built up over its long journey, but was still able to capture some stunning images of the Dwarf Planet during a flyby.
Using those images, NASA put together a video of what New Horizons' July 14 flyby would have looked like. The spacecraft passed Pluto at 31,000 miles per hour and came within 7,800 miles of its surface, Discovery News reported.
Below is the video NASA released.
But with New Horizons not sticking around with Pluto and its moons, the spacecraft will seek a new target in the Kuiper Belt to examine. NASA selected the Kuiper Belt Object called 2014 MU69 and are awaiting approval for the destination.
Mission managers nicknamed the target PT1 (potential target 1) and will submit a formal proposal by 2016 and would expect New Horizons to arrive in Jan. 2019.
"Even as the New Horizon's spacecraft speeds away from Pluto out into the Kuiper Belt, and the data from the exciting encounter with this new world is being streamed back to Earth, we are looking outward to the next destination for this intrepid explorer," John Grunsfeld, an astronaut and chief of the NASA Science Mission Directorate, said in a press release. "While discussions whether to approve this extended mission will take place in the larger context of the planetary science portfolio, we expect it to be much less expensive than the prime mission while still providing new and exciting science."
