How obliquity has differently shaped Pluto’s and Triton’s landscapes and climates

Abstract

Triton and Pluto are believed to share a common origin, both forming initially in the Kuiper Belt but Triton being later captured by Neptune. Both objects display similar sizes, densities, and atmospheric and surface ice composition, with the presence of volatile ices N2, CH4, and CO. Yet their appearance, including their surface albedo and ice distribution strongly differ. What can explain these different appearances? A first disparity is that Triton is experiencing significant tidal heating due to its orbit around Neptune, with subsequent resurfacing and a relatively flat surface, while Pluto is not tidally activated and displays a pronounced topography. Here we present long-term volatile transport simulations of Pluto and Triton, using the same initial conditions and volatile inventory, but with the known orbit and rotation of each object. The model reproduces, to first order, the observed volatile ice surface distribution on Pluto and Triton. Our results unambiguously demonstrate that obliquity is the main driver of the differences in surface appearance and in climate properties on Pluto and Triton, and give further support to the hypothesis that both objects had a common origin followed by a different dynamical history.