Browsing Tag
comet
8 posts
Distant comet cracks into two halves after being heated by the sun
Space A fragmentation event has given astronomers a new way to study a comet from the outer reaches of the solar system By Jonathan O’Callaghan Comet C/2018 F4 split in two and now the halves are moving away from each otherHui et al. A comet from the distant reaches of our solar system has been
Bright new comet discovered zooming toward the sun could outshine the stars next year
Home News Comet ISON seen making a close approach to the sun in 2013. A newly discovered comet, C/2023 A3, will appear far brighter in the sky if it survives the sun's rays in fall 2024. (Image credit: NASA) A newly discovered comet may appear as bright as a star in the night sky by
Comet 67P’s abundant oxygen more of an illusion, new study suggests
When the European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft discovered abundant molecular oxygen bursting from comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (67P) in 2015, it puzzled scientists. They had never seen a comet emit oxygen, let alone in such abundance. But most alarming were the deeper implications: that researchers had to account for so much oxygen, which meant reconsidering everything they…
Near-Earth Comet Exploded over North America about 1,500 Years Ago
Archaeologists have found meteorites, microspherules, iridium and platinum anomalies, and burned charcoal-rich habitation surfaces at 11 archaeological sites of the Hopewell culture in three states stretching across the Ohio River Valley. While Hopewell people survived the catastrophic event, which occurred between 252 and 383 CE, it likely contributed to their cultural decline. Multiple independent comet…
Why Are Comet Heads Green – But Not Their Tails? Accidental Discovery Leads to Solution of 90-Year-Old Puzzle
An accidental discovery and a love of spectroscopic perturbations leads to the solution of a 90-year-old puzzle. In a global collaboration, a team of researchers recently proved a 90-year-old theory on why comets’ heads, but never the tails, are green. The scientific explanation, published recently in PNAS, has to do with the way the molecule…
Comet Leonard makes its closest approach to the sun today, one year after its discovery
Home News Skywatching Astrophotographer Chris Schur captured this stunning photo of Comet Leonard on Dec. 4, 2021 from Payson, Arizona using a 10-inch Newtonian telescope and 60-minute camera exposure. (Image credit: Courtesy of Chris Schur) The brightest comet in the night sky right now makes its closest approach to the sun Monday (Jan. 3) and…
Home Space News By European Space Agency (ESA) December 24, 2021 Frame from a movie captured by the SoloHI instrument on the ESA/NASA Solar Orbiter spacecraft of Comet Leonard on December 17-18, 2021. Credit: ESA/NASA/NRL/SoloHI Comet Leonard, a mass of space dust, rock, and ice about a kilometer across is heading for a close pass…
A colossal comet once mistaken for a dwarf planet is headed to our solar system
Home News Appliances (Image credit: NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/J. da Silva) Scientists are getting a better look at Bernardinelli-Bernstein, the largest comet ever discovered, as it slowly makes its way back into the solar system after 3.5 million years.The comet, officially designated C/2014 UN271 and discovered in 2021 by Pedro Bernardinelli and Gary Bernstein, might be as big…