Hydra in 3D: live position and orbit

Pluto's outermost known moon, the fastest tumbler of the small moons, spinning once roughly every 10 hours.

Hydra is shown at its real position, computed from NASA/JPL ephemeris data. The view opens on Hydra; you can travel in time, switch between the educational overview and the true-scale voyage, and compare it with every other body of the solar system.

Orbits

Pluto

Radius

18.5 km (± 5 %)¹

Mass

3.00 × 10¹⁶ kg (± 15 %)¹ (derived value)

Surface gravity

0.0058 m/s²¹ (derived value)

Mean distance from Pluto

65 200 km²

Orbital period

38 days²

Sidereal rotation

10.32 hours³

Missions

• New Horizons

Sources

1. NASA JPL Solar System Dynamics, Planetary Satellite Physical Parameters. read 2026-09-17. https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sats/phys_par/
2. NASA JPL Solar System Dynamics, Planetary Satellite Mean Elements. read 2026-09-17. https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sats/elem/
3. NASA NSSDCA, Planetary and Satellite Fact Sheets. read 2026-09-17. https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/planetfact.html