Abstract
Near–infrared spectra (0.8–2.5 μm) of Triton and Pluto reveal six absorption bands attributed to the methane molecule. Additional considerations of temperature, spatial variability on the surfaces of these bodies, and the character of the absorption bands indicates that frozen methane is the principal contributor to the spectral signatures observed. Triton shows an additional absorption band which is tentatively identified as molecular nitrogen, probably in the liquid state. The red color observed for both of these objects in the photovisual spectral region (0.3–1.0 μm) may result from photochemical derivatives of methane and nitrogen, known from laboratory work to have such coloration.
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Cruikshank, D.P., Brown, R.H., Clark, R.N. (1985). Methane Ice on Triton and Pluto. In: Klinger, J., Benest, D., Dollfus, A., Smoluchowski, R. (eds) Ices in the Solar System. NATO ASI Series, vol 156. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-5418-2_56
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-5418-2_56
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