Pluto and Beyond

Pluto and Beyond provides viewers with a fascinating look at our solar system's most enigmatic planet, the dwarf planet Pluto as well as a recently discovered feature, the Kuiper Belt.

Pluto and Beyond opens with the New Horizons mission scientists and their families waiting in anticipation for the spacecraft to fly by object 2014 MU69, now known as Ultima Thule, in the Kuiper Belt. The documentary then backtracks, giving viewers the backstory that has led the mission scientists to this historic moment.

It all began with the launch of the New Horizons spacecraft on a Lockheed Martin Atlas V rocket at Cape Canaveral on January 19, 2006. New Horizons flew past the planet Mars seventy-eight days later. A year after launch, New Horizons flew past Jupiter, capturing a volcanic eruption on Io, a Jupiter moon. Nine years after its launch, New Horizons began its approach to the Pluto system, having flown past Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.

From Earth, Pluto is nothing but a blur in the sky. But the New Horizons mission offers  scientists a first real look at this mysterious dwarf planet. Everything goes well until  July 4, 2015, when mission scientists inexplicably lose contact  with the spacecraft. Mission scientists eventually determined that the craft's computers had been overloaded. Alice Bowman, the Mission Operations Manager and her team managed to upload the necessary instructions to the spacecraft enabling it to function in time for the Pluto flyby.

The flyby reveals Pluto to be a planet of mountains made of ice and a massive glacier of methane and nitrogen ice. Planetary astronomers and astrophysicists now have more questions than answers as they speculate on Pluto's planetary geology and the possibility that conditions may be conducive for life.

The documentary then explores the history of our knowledge about Pluto beginning with its discovery  in 1930 by Clyde Tombaugh, a young American farm boy. Astronomers argued about Pluto's mass, eventually coming to the conclusion that it was smaller than Earth's moon. 

Beyond Pluto, the solar system was a mystery, an unknown. However, two astronomers, David Jewett and Jane Luu, discovered that there was much more than just empty space beyond Pluto. For six years, they searched the night sky, looking for evidence of something beyond Pluto. In 1992 they discovered an object located beyond Pluto and orbiting the Sun. They soon discovered many more objects in this region. Now known as the Kuiper Belt, is largely unknown to astronomers because it is so far away from Earth and therefore difficult to explore. Their discoveries led astronomers to theorize that Pluto was likely part of the Kuiper Belt.

The big unknown for the New Horizons mission was what to explore after Pluto. As New Horizons was approaching the Pluto system, astronomers began to search for an object in the Kuiper Belt that would be within the fuel capabilities of the spacecraft. In 2014, with the assistance of the Hubble Telescope, astronomers discovered an unknown object, designated 2014 MU69, eventually named Ultima Thule. However, finding an object was the first of many problems to solve.

The team needed to know more about Ultima Thule and one way to do that was to observe a stellar occultation which would help them determine the size and shape of the object. The astronomers needed two pieces of information: the exact location of Ultima Thule and a star that would be blocked out momentarily by the passage of Ultima Thule allowing observation of the object's shadow from Earth. The Hubble Telescope provided researchers with Ultima Thule's position. The Gaia Space Observatory, launched in 2013 was in the process of mapping the position, distances and motions of stars with precision. It could provide the data on a star that would be blinked out by Ultima Thule's passage in front of it.  Observing a stellar occultation is difficult because of the distance involved, the orbit pathway and many other factors.

After two failed attempts in 2017 to view occultations, Marc Buie and his team succeeded on July 17, 2017 in Patagonia, Argentina. With volunteers holding plywood to block the wind, the astronomers observed the star blink out for two seconds as Ultima Thule passed in front of it. In all, five different telescopes captured the occultation and provided the team with some interesting information. Ultima Thule is estimated to be about twenty miles across but even more interesting is the Kuiper Belt object's unusual shape. Scientists eventually settled on the theory that it is a "contact binary" object formed when the solar system formed.

Scientists believe that the planets formed due to a process called pebble accretion, where bits of dust, rock and gas clump together to form planetoids. It's possible that Ultima Thule is one such object that formed long ago when the solar system was beginning to form. In other words, it offers an opportunity to look back on the creation of our solar system.

On January 1, 2019, at 12:33am, New Horizons sails by Ultima Thule, a mere 2,200 km away. Telemetry from the spacecraft take six hours to travel the four billion miles from Ultima Thule to Earth. The results are breathtaking and enlightening. The New Horizons team is ecstatic as all of their hard work has paid off. The accomplishment, to view an object scientists did not even know existed when New Horizons was launched in 2006 is even more impressive.

Discussion

The New Horizons mission was tasked to explore the farthest regions of our solar system through the New Horizons mission, launched in January 16, 2006. The mandate of the mission was to explore the edge of our solar system, occupied by the dwarf planet Pluto as well as objects in the Kuiper Belt beyond Pluto. The journey to Pluto would take well over nine years.

The New Horizons spacecraft was designed, built and operated by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland. The science payload includes "an imaging spectrometer to probe atmospheric composition and planet structure, a visible and infrared camera to obtain high-resolution color maps and surface composition maps; a long-range telescopic camera for high-resolution surface images; particle spectrometers to measure charged particles in and around Pluto’s atmosphere; a detector to measure masses of space-dust particles; and two copies of a radio science experiment to examine atmospheric structure, surface thermal properties and planet mass." (1)

In February 2007, New Horizons flew past the planet Jupiter, and using its gravity to assist it on towards Pluto. In 2015, the spacecraft began a six month exploration of the Pluto system, culminating with a closest flyby on July 14. New Horizons gave scientists and the world a first close up look at Pluto. But it also allowed them to explore the Kuiper Belt, a region of the outer solar system that is similar to, but much larger than, the asteroid belt.

With a NOVA team embedded in the New Horizons mission team, Pluto and Beyond presents all the details, struggles and accomplishments in the exploration of the Pluto system. Viewers who haven't seen the photographs of Pluto from this mission will be understandably astonished. This mysterious planet that appears as a blurry image from Earth is revealed to look like an ice-covered Mars, with red hues.

While the impressive accomplishments of New Horizons Pluto mission and the beautiful photographs of Pluto are captivating, the most exciting part of the mission was the astronomer's struggle to work out all the details necessary to make the flyby of Ultima Thule a reality.  Pluto and Beyond captures the determination and persistence of astronomers as they work to capture the stellar occultation. Their dedication to science and the mission is obvious. In the end, we all are able to share in the fruits of their efforts as New Horizons flyby reveal Ultima Thule's unusual appearance. As of this time, New Horizons continues to send back data to Earth on the mission to Ultima Thule. Who knows what discoveries it might reveal in the remaining lifetime of the spacecraft as it makes its way into deep space.

For astronomy buffs, Pluto and Beyond is a documentary not to be missed. It is NOVA at its finest.

image credits:
Pluto and Charon: https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/thumbnails/image/nh-pluto-charon-v2-10-1-15.jpg

DVD Documentary: The War of 1812

June 2012 marks the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812, a largely forgotten war in Britain and America, but not so in Canada. In Canada, there are two national heroes from the war; Sir Isaac Brock, the brave soldier who died during the Battle of Queenston Heights, and Laura Secord, the intrepid heroine who warned the British of an impending attack thus helping them to secure a victory in the Battle of Beaver Dams.

The documentary, The War of 1812 provides viewers with a good overview of this conflict, drawing on experts and historical documents, and personal accounts. It opens with  background information as to why America declared war on a much stronger military nation. The war involved American colonists fighting against the largest naval power in the world at that time, Great Britain, as well as Canadian colonists and Native warriors. It was a war that should not have happened.

In the early 1800's the world was at war in Europe, Britain against France. Napoleon Bonaparte was intent upon conquering Europe and the only way Britain could stop him was to stop the French army from receiving supplies. Britain attempted to do this by blocking supply ships on the high seas. America remained neutral in the war but paid a price for this stance.

Britain was stopping ships on the high seas. All neutral ships trading with France had to stop in Britain and pay a duty. If they did not obey this decree, they were considered enemy ships. The Royal Navy stopped many ships on the high seas, many of which were American. And from these ships Britain took money and men. Britain "impressed" over six thousand men in the early years of the 19th century. These men were forced to serve on British ships. As the years went by, the Americans became more and more outraged and resentment seethed. This resentment built up to such a point that the Republicans began to agitate for a declaration of war.

Shawnee warrior Tecumseh became involved in the war because of the American policy of stealing the lands of Native Americans.  One by one, many tribes were signing treaties with the Americans and losing their lands. In particular, Governor William Harrison of the Indiana Territory, was responsible for the Native Americans losing much of their land. Tecumseh had seen the indigenous peoples pushed back from the sea to the lakes and he wanted this to stop.

Tecumseh formed a confederacy of Native tribes who would oppose Harrison and the Americans. He would not allow the American expansion into Indian lands to go unopposed. While Tecumseh was away gathering support, Harrison decided to attack Tecumseh's headquarters in Prophetstown near the Tippecanoe River. However, the Natives attacked the Americans and only retreated when their supplies of ammunition ran low. Harrison proclaimed this a great victory but the battle served to turn the Native Americans even more against the Americans.

The Americans were outraged at finding British supplies in the Prophetstown, which they had burned to the ground. The result was that a Declaration of War was issued against Great Britain in June of 1812. Britain did not want another war; the troubles at home were deep and many. Canadians knew an invasion by America was likely. Many Americans believed that the colonists in Canada would welcome an invasion. Many others, especially those who lived on the Eastern seaboard, such as in New England were outraged.

The American plan was to attack and invade Canada in three places; at Detroit, at Niagara and at Montreal. There were several problems with this. First there were no roads to these areas and travel was by water - controlled by the British. Secondly, while the Americans were poorly prepared, the British-Canadians were not. The British soldiers were veterans and professional soldiers while the Americans used primarily militia who were untrained and untried. The three invasions were disasters with the Americans losing at Detroit and Queenston while the Montreal invasion never happened. The invaders returned home. Canada however, lost it's best soldier, General Isaac Brock in the Battle of Queenston Heights.

Nevertheless, the war continued on with battles that seemed to contain one blunder after the other on both sides. The Battle of Stoney Creek in 1813 was representative of how much of the war was fought. Two American generals got lost in the forest. A third American general led a charge against his own troops. The Americans lost the battle but retained the field, while the British were victorious but retreated!

Britain needed to retain control of the Great Lakes as this was the only way to supply the colony. After the naval battle of September 10th, 1813, the Americans controlled Lake Erie. This allowed them a second chance to try to capture the heart of eastern Canada, a chance which was again botched. Two important battles, at Crysler Farm and Chateauguay, which the Americans lost and quickly forgot, are still remembered by Canadians. These battles are remembered because this was the first time that the three founding nations of the Canada, French, English and First Nations came together to defend their country.

1814 was the most violent year of the war. During the spring of 1814, the Town of York (Toronto) and the Town of Newark (Niagara on the Lake) were burnt to the ground by the American troops. The British returned the favour along the Niagara river, burning Buffalo and other towns. The Battle of Lundy's Lane occurred that summer and was the bloodiest, fiercest battle of the war.

In 1814, the British finally captured Napoleon and the war with France was over. This meant that Great Britain was now free to send the full force of its navy against the Americans. This might mean a serious loss of territory for the Americans. Not only that but raids by the British in the southern United States had freed over 4000 slaves. British troops marched on Washington and in a move that was certainly retaliatory, burned the White House. America could no longer afford to finance the war. And Britain was paying American farmers to supply the British army in Canada. So President Madison sent a delegation to Europe to negotiate a peace treaty.

Although the British initially asked for a large Indian state surrounding the Great Lakes, losses at the Battle of Baltimore and Fort McHenry meant that they eventually dropped this request. The terrible British loss at the Battle of New Orleans, which was fought AFTER the peace treaty of Ghent was signed, gave the American's the misguided notion that they had somehow won the war. Many equated Jackson's victory with the arrival of peace. This propaganda has lived on in America for years and is probably the greatest myth of the war. In reality, although Canada gained some territory, the boundaries between the United States and Canada remained the same. The principal losers were the First Nations, who lost their land forever, to American expansionism.

Discussion

The War of 1812 draws on re-enactment footage to tell the remarkable story of a war filled with mishaps, incompetent military commanders, botched battles. myths and misinformation. The documentary draws upon many experts from America, Canada, and England: Rick Hill, Historian and Artist, Grand River Territory; Andrew Lambert Historian, Kings College London; Donald Fixico Native American Historian, Arizona State University; Rene Chartrand, Former Senior Curator, Canada's National Historic Sites; Donald E. Graves, Historian; Patrick Wilder, Historian, New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation; Diana Graves, Canadian Author, John Sugden, Tecumseh Biographer; and Ron Dale, Superintendent, Niagara National Historic Sites, Canada.

Overall, The War of 1812, directed by Diana Garey and Lawrence Hott,  provides an informative, balanced presentation of this little known and long forgotten conflict. The documentary might have focused more on the causes of the war and why President Madison chose to go to war against a colony of Great Britain. The documentary was also "light" on British historical experts. What was most interesting was how the First Nations experts explained the war from their perspective. There is no doubt they felt very betrayed by the British who promised them help in reclaiming land lost by American expansionism.

The use of re-enactments was useful in telling the story of the war and portraying the various battles. The documentary is filled with much interesting trivia such as what happened to the painting of George Washington in the White House prior to the burning, the use of Tecumseh as a hero by the American military, and how freed black slaves were accepted into the British army. Although this documentary is almost two hours in length, it is well worth the time for history buffs and anyone wishing to know more about this little known, but very important event in Canadian and North American history.

For an introduction to the War of 1812 and its causes, check out the War of 1812 website,  (www.warof1812.ca) This website has links to just about everything about the war including battles, weapons, regiments, treaties, biographies, video and sound clips and re-enactments.