Fastest ever space craft to launch, pass moon in just 9 hours
 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10878811/

As a comparison, Apollo 11 took 3 days to reach the moon.

Its utlimate destination, which it will reach in aproximately 10 years, is Pluto, the last planet we have not sent some sort of probe to. Along with exploring Pluto, NASA also plans to collect data about the belt of ice and other debris that Pluto exists in.

Yes! I just saw a show on this on one of the science channels...I am SO excited!!:snap: :snap:

Pluto is so interesting: comet? or planet? Kuiper belt capture? God, I hope I'm around when the data starts coming in...

BTW I think you meant 9 hours, not days, in the thread title. The mission will take 9 years, I believe.

Here's a good graphic detailing the onboard intruments and what kinds of data the probe is designed to collect.

Honeymooners! Yeah, we were laughing over the naming protocol during that show...I've gotta find info on it; did you see it?

I was looking for the show name when I found out that the Pluto mission has detractors.

No, I didn't see the show, sounds like it was fascinating.

The nuclear protestors ammuse me. Most of them have no concept of the reality of the physics of radiation and that the odds of 1) there being and accident AND 2) that accident causing the radioactive material to be dispersed in a dangerous way are astronomically small.

Though I disagree with the argument, the protesters against these things (and they protested Cassini as well) haven't ever argued that the odds of a specific mission causing trouble is very small that as the number of missions accumulate the odds of something disastrous happening becomes more and more likely.

However, since I am a huge proponent of vastly increased use of nuclear power on Earth, I'm not really bothered by the relatively infinitesimal risk of plutonium cargo on space missions.

Feh...launch delayed due to high winds.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10878811/

I think he missed this ;)

The problem is that the protesters are not motivated by science and probability but rather by politics and the fact that their houses happen to be in the area. Much like religion and politics, probability and politics do not make good bedfellows.

D'oh! Although with the wind delays, 9 days is looking more accurate.