Pluto's surface feature is a nitrogen-ice glacier.

Pluto's surface feature is a nitrogen-ice glacier.

• A. glacier
• B. plateau
• C. canyon
• D. valley

Answer: (A)

Glaciers are flowing masses of ice that move under their own weight, behaving like slow rivers of solid ice. On Pluto, extremely cold conditions allow nitrogen ice to exist on the surface and behave as a glacier. The large, smooth plains in Pluto’s heart-shaped region, known to be made of nitrogen ice, flow very slowly and show patterns from internal movement, which is a hallmark of glacial activity. That moving, flowing ice best describes Pluto’s surface feature than the other landform terms. A plateau would be an elevated, flat-topped area, which isn’t what Pluto’s nitrogen-ice plains are. A canyon is a deep, narrow gorge carved by erosion, typically with channels and steep sides, not a flowing ice sheet. A valley is a low area between hills or mountains, often formed by erosion as well, not a rotating, flowing sheet of ice. So the nitrogen-ice glacier concept fits Pluto’s feature the best.

Glaciers are flowing masses of ice that move under their own weight, behaving like slow rivers of solid ice. On Pluto, extremely cold conditions allow nitrogen ice to exist on the surface and behave as a glacier. The large, smooth plains in Pluto’s heart-shaped region, known to be made of nitrogen ice, flow very slowly and show patterns from internal movement, which is a hallmark of glacial activity. That moving, flowing ice best describes Pluto’s surface feature than the other landform terms.

A plateau would be an elevated, flat-topped area, which isn’t what Pluto’s nitrogen-ice plains are. A canyon is a deep, narrow gorge carved by erosion, typically with channels and steep sides, not a flowing ice sheet. A valley is a low area between hills or mountains, often formed by erosion as well, not a rotating, flowing sheet of ice. So the nitrogen-ice glacier concept fits Pluto’s feature the best.