9 February 2011: NASA is a Comet, as solar heat to discover devours.
"For the first time, which see same Comet before and after its closest approach to the Sun, we are", explains Joe Veverka, principal investigator of the Stardust-NExT mission of the NASA.
The Comet is Temple 1, NASA's deep impact probe in the year 2005 visited. Now an other NASA spacecraft, Stardust NExT, is for a second look at the Valentine's day, 14 February 2011 in close. The two visits bracket of a complete orbit of the comet to the Sun - and a blast of solar heat.
"Close encounters with the sun never go well for a Comet," says Veverka. "Violent solar thermal dust and gas spout evaporates the ICES into the orbit of the Comet core, so it spit." "The cyclical loss of material leads finally to his end."
Researchers suspect the extravagant disintegration not evenly across a comet is surface *, but until now they have a way, where exactly, occurs, document was missing. Stardust is as next picture some of the same surface areas deep impact photographed six years ago reveals how these areas have changed, and where material has been lost.
"Deep impact gave us tantalizing glimpses of temple 1," says Veverka. "And we saw strange and unusual things, those which we a closer look at want to."
At a press conference January 2011 see Veverka and other team members, Stardust NExT listed functions, they are most interested in are:
For starters, parts are layered the Comet surface such as pancakes.
"Earth has layers, because water and wind move dirt and debris here, but layering on a Comet was a surprise - and a mystery," says Veverka.
"An idea is that two Protocometary together, so something like a stack of Flapjacks, body at low speeds and Smushed form collided," says Pete Shultz, Stardust NExT co-investigator.
Is that true? By Stardust-NExT provides data, information, and may show which made "Comet pancakes."
Another area are even more interested in the research team.
"It is a large plateau that looks like a stream," says Shultz. "If it really is a river, means there before recently gas and dust from the [surface]."
Stardust-NExT will show how the plateau has changed (it flows?), helps the team determine its origin. What whatever their origin, the plateau and layering show that comets have adopted a much more complicated geologic history than in the past.
"Temple 1 is not just a fuzzy ball," says Shultz. "It has history."
It is a story, NASA a hand in had has. During the 2005 deep impact a projectile 820 pounds into the orbit of the Comet core filed. The impact of so much material excavated in a development which surprised mission scientists, that the underlying crater has been hidden. Deep impact cameras were able to see that the impactor was fueled by the huge cloud of dust. Stardust could provide a long-awaited look at the impact site next.
"There, the dust has settled, if the right part of the Comet is confronted us, we could find you learn under the crater and its size," says Veverka. "That would answer some key questions." "For example, is a comet surface hard or soft?"
In a future mission to land a spacecraft on a Comet and collect samples for analysis. To design a suitable Lander, researchers need to know what type of surface it on land would. You must also know, which tools send - drill bits for hard floors or blades for something soft.
Such as deep impact had the Stardust probe already a productive career. In the 1999 launched it approached Comet Wild 2 close enough in the year 2004 on image-feature rich surface and even collect dust particles from the Comet atmosphere. (The amino acid Glycene - a building block of life was an important result in the sample).
"Only this old ship rest on the laurels, could have let so that it always the Sun, orbit" Veverka says. "But instead, we make first-class Comet science with it - again."
As for temple 1 expected a hungry Sun.
Author: Dauna Coulter | Editor: Dr. Tony Phillips | Credit: Science@NASA
Stardust be further - homepage
Stardust next: A comet "before and after"
Punch a hole in a Comet: take 2--Science@NASA
* Scientists estimate that a comet is surface reduces on average 5 to 6 feet on during each "date" with the Sun, and the loss is not uniform. "Typically only 10 to 20 percent of the Comet surface active, so that as much as 50 to 60 meters, could lose these areas", Veverka said. "That is comets are not uniformly to the inside either - some places are eisiger, some rockigeren."
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