Kiss-and-capture: The dance of Pluto and Charon

How did Pluto meet its largest moon, Charon? Many have speculated that Charon formed in an impact, but traditional models of planetary formation have struggled to explain many of the quirks of this system. This week, Adeene Denton, a research scientist at the University of Arizona, shares her team's new paper that suggests a "kiss-and-capture" may solve this mystery. Then Bruce Betts, The Planetary Society's chief scientist, discusses contact binaries in our Solar System and shares a new Random Space Fact in What's Up. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/2025-pluto-kiss-and-captureSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.