Tag Archive for 'Comet'

This Hubble Space Telescope image of Comet 252P/LINEAR was photographed at 20:56 GMT on April 4, when the comet was 8.6 million miles from Earth. The visit was one of the closest encounters between this comet and our planet. This image was originally black and white and recorded only overall brightness. These brightness values were translated into a range of bluish hues. Such color ‘maps’ can be useful in helping to distinguish subtly varying brightness in an image. Image credit: NASA / ESA / J.-Y. Li, Planetary Science Institute.

Hubble Space Telescope Sees Comet 252P LINEAR

May 13, 2016 by News Staff

The Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) aboard the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has snapped photos of a periodic comet called 252P/LINEAR. This Hubble Space...

Artist’s impression of C/2014 S3 (PanSTARRS). The comet’s current long orbital period (approximately 860 years) suggests that its source is in the Oort Cloud -- a large region surrounding the Sun like a giant, thick soap bubble -- and it was nudged comparatively recently into an orbit that brings it closer to the Sun. Image credit: M. Kornmesser / ESO.

Unique Rocky Comet from Oort Cloud May Provide Clues about Origin of Solar System

Apr 29, 2016 by News Staff

Observations of a tailless comet called C/2014 S3 (PanSTARRS), made with ESO’s Very Large Telescope and the Canada France Hawaii Telescope, show that...

This image of an impact crater in the Sirenum Fossae region of Mars was taken by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter on March 30, 2015. The crater is approximately 3,300 feet (1-km) wide and appears relatively recent as it has a sharp rim and well-preserved ejecta. The steep inner slopes are carved by gullies and include possible recurring slope lineae on the equator-facing slopes. Image credit: NASA / JPL / University of Arizona / Alfred McEwen.

Comet, Asteroid Impacts 4 Billion Years Ago Likely Enhanced Life-Supporting Habitat on Mars

Apr 6, 2016 by News Staff

The bombardment of the Red Planet about 4 billion years ago (Noachian period) by giant comets and asteroids likely enhanced climate conditions enough to...

Scientist Links Earth’s Periodic Mass Extinctions to Planet Nine

Mar 31, 2016 by News Staff

According to Prof. Daniel P. Whitmire from the University of Arkansas, the suspected Planet Nine triggers comet showers linked to mass extinctions on Earth...

Saturn’s small moon Phoebe, depicted in this image, seems likely to be a centaur that was captured by the gas giant’s gravity at some time in the past. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / Space Science Institute.

Outer Solar System’s Massive Comets Could Pose Hazard to Civilization, Scientists Say

Dec 23, 2015 by News Staff

The discovery of hundreds of huge comets in the outer Solar System over the last 20 years means that these ancient objects pose a real hazard to our civilization,...

This image of 2015 TB145 was generated using radar data collected by the Arecibo Observatory. Image credit: NAIC-Arecibo / NSF.

2015 TB145: Astronomers Capture Radar Images of ‘Halloween Asteroid’

Nov 1, 2015 by News Staff

Astronomers using NSF’s 1,000-foot (305-m) Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico have captured images of a massive asteroid – designated 2015 TB145...

Rosetta has made the first in situ detection of oxygen molecules outgassing from a comet; this surprising observation suggests they were incorporated into the comet during its formation. This infographic depicts various strands of evidence gathered for the study. Image credit: ESA / ATG medialab / Rosetta / NavCam / A. Bieler et al. / CC BY-SA IGO 3.0.

Molecular Oxygen Detected in Coma of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

Oct 29, 2015 by News Staff

ESA’s Rosetta orbiter has detected molecules of oxygen in the coma of comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko. Rosetta has made the first in situ detection...

Comet Lovejoy (C/2014 Q2) on February 22, 2015. An international team of scientists has found more than twenty molecules in the comet, including ethyl alcohol and a simple sugar. Image credit: Fabrice Noel.

Astronomers Detect Ethyl Alcohol, Sugar in Atmosphere of Comet Lovejoy

Oct 26, 2015 by Natali Anderson

In a paper in the journal Science Advances, astronomers report the detection of 21 different organic molecules in gas from Comet Lovejoy, including the...

An artist’s illustration of a comet impact on Earth. Image credit: Don Davis / NASA.

New Study Reveals Link between Mass Extinction Events and Comet/Asteroid Showers

Oct 20, 2015 by News Staff

According to a study that will be published today in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, mass extinctions occurring over the...

Double Catastrophe Wiped Out Dinosaurs: Deccan Traps Volcanism and Chicxulub Impact

Oct 2, 2015 by News Staff

An international team of scientists from India and the United States has uncovered evidence that a massive comet or asteroid impact on Earth 66 million...

Rosetta NavCam image taken on 14 March 2015 at 85.7 km from the center of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko; it has been cleaned to remove the more obvious bad pixels and cosmic ray artefacts, and intensities have been scaled. Image credit: ESA / Rosetta / NAVCAM / CC BY-SA IGO 3.0.

67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko Was Once Two Separate Comets

Sep 30, 2015 by News Staff

According to a new paper in the journal Nature, two comets collided in the early Solar System to give rise to the extraordinary shape of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. This...

Mosaic of four images taken by Rosetta’s navigation camera on September 19, 2014, at 28.6 km from the center of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The images used for this mosaic were taken in sequence as a 2x2 raster over a 20 minute period, meaning that there is some motion of the spacecraft and rotation of the comet between the images. Image credit: ESA / Rosetta / NAVCAM / CC BY-SA IGO 3.0.

Rosetta’s Spectrometer Detects Noble Gas Argon at 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

Sep 29, 2015 by News Staff

The Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis (ROSINA) mass spectrometer aboard ESA’s Rosetta spacecraft has detected the noble gas argon,...

Active pits on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Image credit: Jean-Baptiste Vincent et al.

Rosetta Provides Evidence for Daily Water-Ice Cycle on 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

Sep 24, 2015 by News Staff

Researchers using the Visible, InfraRed and Thermal Imaging Spectrometer aboard ESA’s Rosetta spacecraft have identified a region on the surface of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko...

The dot in the cross-hairs is a comet streaming toward the Sun, as seen on September 14, 2015, by SOHO. This is the 3,000th comet discovered in the data from the space observatory since it launched in 1995, Image credit: NASA / ESA / SOHO.

SOHO Observatory Discovers Its 3,000th Comet

Sep 15, 2015 by News Staff

On Sunday, September 13, the NASA/ESA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) discovered its 3,000th comet. The dot in the cross-hairs is a comet streaming...

Comet Hitchhiker is a concept for orbiting and landing on comets and asteroids. The idea involves using a carbon nanotube tether to hitchhike on to a comet as it flies by. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / Cornelius Dammrich.

Comet Hitchhiker: New Concept for Orbiting, Landing on Comets and Asteroids

Sep 3, 2015 by News Staff

Researchers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) have devised a new way to get into orbit and land on Solar System’s small bodies. Comet Hitchhiker...

Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko Reaches Perihelion

Aug 14, 2015 by News Staff

ESA’s Rosetta orbiter yesterday witnessed 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko making its closest approach to the Sun. The comet and the spacecraft were 186 million...

This image was taken from a distance of 186 km from the center of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko; the jet is estimated to have a minimum speed of 10 m/s and originates from a location on the comet’s neck, in the rugged Anuket region. Image credit: ESA / Rosetta / MPS for OSIRIS Team / MPS / UPD / LAM / IAA / SSO / INTA / UPM / DASP / IDA.

Rosetta Captures Dramatic Outburst from Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

Aug 11, 2015 by News Staff

A dramatic short-lived outburst from 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko was captured by the OSIRIS narrow-angle camera aboard ESA’s Rosetta orbiter on July 29,...

Philae Lander Finds Organic Compounds on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

Jul 31, 2015 by News Staff

A special issue of the journal Science highlights seven new studies that delve into the data that has been collected by ESA’s probe Philae on 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. This...

67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko Could Harbor Alien Life, Say UK Scientists

Jul 6, 2015 by News Staff

Two planetary scientists from the UK – Prof Chandra Wickramasinghe of the Buckingham Center for Astrobiology and Dr Max Wallis of the University...

ESA’s Rosetta Sees Active Pits on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

Jul 2, 2015 by News Staff

In a new study published online in the journal Nature, 18 almost circular pits have been identified in the northern hemisphere of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko....

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