Facts about Makemake's methane ice
- 10
Makemake's methane ice exhibits a density approximately 0.42 grams per cubic centimeter, lighter than water ice and causing it to float in hypothetical liquid nitrogen environments.
- 09
Makemake's methane ice sublimation rate varies by approximately 10-15 percent depending on the dwarf planet's distance from the Sun along its highly elliptical orbit.
- 08
Makemake's methane ice exhibits a reddish coloration when exposed to ultraviolet radiation, a process called space weathering that gradually darkens the dwarf planet's surface over millions of years.
- 07
Makemake's methane ice distribution concentrates heavily in equatorial and mid-latitude regions rather than exclusively at the poles, contrary to initial predictions based on models of other Kuiper Belt objects.
- 06
Laboratory experiments demonstrate that Makemake's methane ice can sublime directly into gas at pressures below 0.3 pascals, explaining why the dwarf planet maintains only a tenuous seasonal atmosphere.
- 05
Makemake's methane ice exhibits crystalline structure that reflects infrared radiation differently than amorphous nitrogen ice, creating distinct spectral signatures detectable by ground-based telescopes.
- 04
New Horizons' 2016 flyby detected absorption features in Makemake's infrared spectrum confirming methane ice comprises a significant fraction of the dwarf planet's polar regions.
- 03
Thermal modeling suggests Makemake's methane ice reaches temperatures around minus 233 degrees Celsius, making it among the coldest surfaces in the solar system's known dwarf planets.
- 02
Makemake's methane ice sublimes more readily than nitrogen ice, causing seasonal atmospheric variations that alter the dwarf planet's surface composition throughout its 310-year orbit.
- 01
Spectroscopic observations from 2010 revealed that Makemake's surface contains methane ice mixed with nitrogen and ethane ices in substantial quantities.