Fig. 2: Modelled deposition of CH4 ice in eastern Cthulhu. | Nature Communications

Fig. 2: Modelled deposition of CH4 ice in eastern Cthulhu.

From: Equatorial mountains on Pluto are covered by methane frosts resulting from a unique atmospheric process

Fig. 2

a Net surface CH4 ice accumulation (from blue to white) in Cthulhu (covering the same area as in Fig. 1a) obtained in our simulation for 2015. Superimposed topography contours are at 300-m intervals. The volatile-free surface is shaded in brown, the Sputnik Planitia N2 ice sheet is shaded in grey. b The same as (a) but using an amplifying albedo feedback for CH4 ice (see ‘Methods’, Surface albedo feedback for equatorial CH4 ice). The albedo feedback has no effect below ∼20°S because these latitudes receive little to no insolation (polar night) in 2015.

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