World's Most Sensitive Astronomical Camera Developed Oct 1, 2009
(May 19, 2006) The continuing disintegration of Comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 has allowed ESA scientists to see into the interior of the comet. Using a revolutionary camera attached to the ESA Optical Ground. (Science Daily)
Scientists announce evidence of water on Moon Sep 30, 2009
Scientists have also speculated that water molecules migrate from high latitudes to the polar regions where it is colder, especially to the deep, dark traps of ancient craters where the water inventory there has likely been supplemented by deliveries from comet impacts that dominated the early years of the Moon's existence. If the water molecules are as mobile as we think they are even a fraction of them they provide a mechanism for getting water to those permanently shadowed craters, says... (Astronomy Now Online)
An unfamiliar neighbourhood Sep 30, 2009
Sometimes comets would appear, behave like streakers in a cricket match, and disappear ... As it warms up, the ice evaporates and trails behind it, giving it a glow and a tail - eventually becoming a comet. (India Times, India -- Health/Science)
Traces of water in lunar rocks may hint at more Sep 26, 2009
Today, in the journal Science, one team of scientists is reporting that signs of water molecules have been detected in lunar rocks, observed from a far-distant spacecraft named Deep Impact that is on its way to sample a comet named Hartley-2 next year. Another report came from the scientists monitoring the Cassini spacecraft that is orbiting Saturn. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Key process for space outpost proved on 'vomit comet' ride Sep 25, 2009
This was Fromwiller's first trip on the plane, which space researchers refer to as the "vomit comet," due to the unsettling ride ... She teamed with Kleinhenz, a veteran of more than 1,000 hours on the vomit comet. (EurekAlert!)
Scientists Plan Against Asteroid Attacks Sep 25, 2009
It is widely accepted that an asteroid or comet 30 to 50 metres across exploded over Tunguska in Siberia in 1908, flattening trees for dozens of kilometres all around. The chance of a similar impact is about 1 in 500 each year (). (Newsmax)
water on the moon Sep 25, 2009
Finally, the Deep Impact spacecraft, as part of its extended EPOXI mission and at the request of the M3 team, made infrared detections of water and hydroxyl as part of a calibration exercise during several close approaches of the Earth-Moon system en route to its planned flyby of comet 103P/Hartley 2 in November 2010. Deep Impact detected the signal at all latitudes above 10 degrees N, though once again, the poles showed the strongest signals. (Harper's Magazine)
Twin Keck Telescopes Probe Dual Dust Disks Sep 25, 2009
"Our new observations suggest 51 Ophiuchi is a beautiful protoplanetary system with a cloud of dust from comets and asteroids extremely close to its parent star," said Marc Kuchner, an astronomer at Goddard and a member of the research team ... Much of the dust in our solar system forms inward of Jupiter's orbit, as comets crumble near the sun and asteroids of all sizes collide ... As asteroid and comet collisions produce dust, the larger particles naturally spiral toward the star. (Science Daily)
Did comet crashes help spark Earth life? Sep 25, 2009
Did comet crashes help spark Earth life ... Did comet crashes help spark Earth life ... The Virginian-Pilot An artist's rendering shows a giant asteroid or comet plunged into Earth near what is now the Chesapeake Bay 35 million years ago. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Water Found on Moon, Probes Report Sep 25, 2009
Sunshine, who was on the team, had a similar instrument on NASA's Deep Impact probe, headed for a comet but swinging by the moon in June ... Pieters figures there are three possibilities: It came from comets or asteroids that crashed into the moon, those crashes freed up trapped water from below the surface, or the solar wind carries hydrogen atoms that binds with oxygen in the dirt. (CBS News)
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's LAMP Shedding Light On Permanently Shadowed Regions Of The Moon Sep 22, 2009
LAMP is nearly identical to the successful Alice instruments developed by SwRI, already flying aboard the joint NASA/ESA Rosetta spacecraft, which is targeting the ancient comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko, and NASA's New Horizons spacecraft, which will probe the atmospheric composition of Pluto and search for an atmosphere over its large moon Charon. LAMP weighs only 6. (Science Daily)
ESO unveils interactive 360 degree view of night sky Sep 22, 2009
A brilliant, emerald-green comet also flew by, although spotting it among a background of tens of millions of stars will be difficult (but rewarding). Overall, the creators of the GigaGalaxy Zoom project hope that these tremendous efforts in bringing the night sky as observed under the best conditions on the planet to stargazers everywhere will inspire awe for the beautiful, immense Universe that we live in. (Astronomy Now Online)
Astronomical birth event results in a multitude of 'baby' comets Sep 18, 2009
Astronomers who were dazzled by the 2007 explosion of a comet into the largest object in the solar system have discovered it gave birth to a bunch of baby comets. Reporting the "largest comet birth ever seen" were David Jewitt, Rachel Stevenson and Jan Kleyna, who observed the event through a Mauna Kea telescope ... They and others on an institute team observed the spectacular outburst of Comet 17P/Holmes in October and November 2007 from the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope on Mauna Kea. (Honolulu Star-Bulletin)
Largest Comet Outburst Sent "Mini Comets" Flying Sep 17, 2009
September 16, 2009 Like a mushroom shooting out spores, a well-known was seen firing multiple "mini comets" that went sailing away at up to 280 miles (451 kilometers) an hour, astronomers have announced. The fragments were recently revealed in high-resolution images of comet Holmes, a relatively small body discovered in 1892 that mysteriously erupted in 2007, when the above images were taken ... 5-kilometer-wide) cloud of dust surrounding the comet swell to become larger than the sun. (National Geographic)
Mini-Comets Within A Comet Lit Up 17P/Holmes During Megaoutburst Sep 17, 2009
16, 2009) Astronomers from the University of California, Los Angeles and the University of Hawaii have discovered multiple fragments ejected during the largest cometary outburst ever witnessed ... Images and animations showing fragments rapidly flying away from the nucleus of comet 17P/Holmes will be presented by Rachel Stevenson at the European Planetary Science Congress in Potsdam, Germany, on Wednesday 16 September ... Stevenson, together with colleagues Jan Kleyna and David Jewitt, began... (Science Daily)
Interactive, 360-degree Panoramic View Of Entire Night Sky Sep 16, 2009
A brilliant, emerald-green comet also flew by, although spotting it among a background of tens of millions of stars will be difficult (but rewarding) ... 26, 2006) On the night of April 23 to 24, ESO's Very Large Telescope observed fragment B of the comet Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 that had split a few days earlier. (Science Daily)
Jupiter Captured Comet For 12 Years In Mid-20th Century Sep 16, 2009
15, 2009) Comet 147P/Kushida-Muramatsu was captured as a temporary moon of Jupiter in the mid-20th century and remained trapped in an irregular orbit for about twelve years ... There are only a handful of known comets where this phenomenon of temporary satellite capture has occurred and the capture duration in the case of Kushida-Muramatsu, which orbited Jupiter between 1949 and 1961, is the third longest ... An international team led by Dr Katsuhito Ohtsuka modelled the trajectories of 18... (Science Daily)
Jupiter Turned Comet Into "Moon" for 12 Years Sep 15, 2009
In 1949 the massive planet's gravity pulled in comet 147P/Kushida-Muramatsu and held it in orbit until 1961, according to an international team led by Katsuhito Ohtsuka of the Tokyo Meteor Network ... The 1,300-foot-wide (400-meter-wide) comet's stint as a so-called temporary satellite was revealed when the researchers used calculations taken since the comet's 1993 discovery to determine the space rock's past course ... "We can be fairly sure that the comet orbited Jupiter once or twice before... (National Geographic)
Gotcha! Jupiter turned comet into a moon Sep 15, 2009
Jupiter turned comet into a moon - Space ... Jupiter turned comet into a moon ... H.A. Weaver, T. E. Smith (STScI), NASASix exposures from the Hubble Space Telescope were combined to create this mosaic of comet P/Shoemaker-Levy 9 on May 17, 1994. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Water quality in orbit Sep 14, 2009
University of Utah chemist Lorraine Siperko experiences weightlessness during a flight aboard a NASA "vomit comet " aircraft ... From the 'Vomit Comet' to the Shuttle to the International Space Station ... During the past decade, the water quality monitoring method was developed and tested during about two dozen low-gravity flights on NASA's "vomit comet" research aircraft such as the KC-135 and C-9, which took off from Ellington Air Force Base in Texas. (EurekAlert!)
detailed new pictures of the universe Sep 12, 2009
Hubble snapped the impact zone after a collision with a possible comet. It is the dark blemish at the bottom. (Harper's Magazine)
After repairs, new space images from Hubble unveiled Sep 11, 2009
With the exception of a picture last month of the bruise on Jupiter caused by a comet, they were the first data obtained with the telescope since a crew spent 13 days in orbit last May replacing, refurbishing and rebuilding its vital components. "This is truly Hubble's new beginning," Edward Weiler, the associate administrator for science at NASA, said at a news conference in Washington. (India Times, India -- Health/Science)
Hubble pictures wow 'em Sep 11, 2009
With the exception of a picture last month of the bruise on Jupiter caused by a comet, they were the first data obtained with the telescope since a crew spent 13 days in orbit last May replacing, refurbishing and rebuilding its vital components. The images include gas flying from a dying star, creating what looked like a butterfly spreading its wings, and a galaxy nearly 10 billion light years away whose image had been stretched and magnified by the gravity of a cluster of galaxies into a... (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
Newly Fixed Hubble Telescope Shows Cosmic Beauty Sep 11, 2009
Earlier this summer, Hubble took pictures of Jupiter when an asteroid or comet hit it. View a slide show, and full resolution images with descriptions on NASA's Hubble page. (Missourian Publishing, MO)
Star performer Sep 11, 2009
Hubble's view of Jupiter taken on 23 July: a dark scar is visible near the giant planets southern pole, the result of an asteroid or comet impact. Bookmark with. (BBC News -- Science)
Hubble unveilsitsnew vision Sep 10, 2009
Although this was Hubble's official coming-out party, the first image from the upgraded telescope was , showing the aftermath of Jupiter's collision with a suspected comet. Click for related content. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Newly Fixed Hubble's Initial Photos Again Amaze Sep 10, 2009
Earlier this summer, Hubble when an asteroid or comet hit it. Your Comments. (W-USA News, DC)
NASA Unveils Photos Sep 10, 2009
The WFC3 was actually used to take a picture of thought to have been caused by a comet collision back in July, but the camera wasn't yet fully calibrated then. Despite a few bumps in the three-month checkout, Hubble's systems and instruments are all up and running now. (Fox News)
Hubble Back in Action With New Space Shots Sep 10, 2009
The first photos from the repaired Hubble came earlier this summer, when the telescope took pictures of Jupiter when an asteroid or comet hit it. They were unscheduled quick black-and-white looks; the photos released Wednesday were planned, longer observations. (CBS News)
Photos from Hubble expected Wednesday Sep 9, 2009
Mission managers did take one break to of a rare event, the comet that struck Jupiter in mid-July and left a dark bruise in the gas giant's roiling atmosphere. That image was taken with the brand new Wide Field Camera 3, which wasn't fully calibrated at the time, but is set to snap more pictures now. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Seeking Warning Signs for Catastrophic Tipping Points Sep 4, 2009
So IMHO it looks pretty ugly, forecast or no forecast - I ll take Ye Big Whipeout (be it comet, meteor, planetary heads on collision, black hole, Big Bang II) anyday. Posted by: NoahB416 09/3/09 11:24 am. (Newsmax)
Solar systems warped by interstellar wind Sep 2, 2009
Stars across the galaxy have generated by the collisions of small comet- and asteroid-like bodies orbiting each star. Astronomers have noticed that many of these debris disks are a bit wonky-looking, with lobes of dust sticking out in odd directions. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Warped Debris Disks Around Stars Are 'Blowin' In The Wind' Aug 29, 2009
"The disks contain small comet- or asteroid-like bodies that may grow to form planets," Debes said. "These small bodies often collide, which produces a lot of fine dust." As the star moves through the galaxy, it encounters thin gas clouds that create a kind of interstellar wind. (Science Daily)
Podcast: Ice Age Impact Aug 26, 2009
Shuffling into oblivion: Did a comet wipe out the great mammals of North America ... Or maybe a comet did it. (SkyAndTelescope.com)
Five Amateurs Win Comet Prize Aug 26, 2009
Five amateur astronomers will share the 2009 for comets they discovered, according to an August 22nd announcement on IAU Circular 9066 from the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory's Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams (). On April 6th, a trio of Italian observers captured Comet Yi-SWAN with a 10-inch reflector operated by near Mayhill, New Mexico ... Dae-am Yi (Korea), who discovered C/2009 F6, also known as Comet Yi-SWAN, on March 26, 2009. (SkyAndTelescope.com)
Saturns rings still puzzle scientists Aug 25, 2009
A large comet or asteroid collision could also explain the swarm of debris. Another theory proposes that the rings represent primordial throwbacks to an early disk of debris that failed to clump into moons, based on how Saturn's gravitational tidal pull constantly stirs the pot. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Extraterrestrial Building Blocks of... Aug 21, 2009
Glycene Amino Acids Found in Wild 2 Comet Samples. For the first time, life's building blocks have been found in a comet out in space ... This suggests that comets and meteorites could have prompted life on Earth. (Suite101.com)
Comet could hold key to life outside Earth Aug 20, 2009
Comet could hold key to life ... Nasa has discovered what could be evidence of life on other planets, in chemicals found in the dust cloud of a comet ... The Stardust spacecraft collected material containing a protein essential for the formation of life from Comet Wild-2, when it was millions of miles away from Earth in 2004. (BBC News -- Science)
New evidence that life may exist beyond Earth Aug 19, 2009
WASHINGTON - Scientists have uncovered fresh evidence that life could exist beyond Earth, with research published on Tuesday showing that comet dust contained traces of a compound vital to human existence. Researchers probing dust and gas collected from the Wild 2 comet by NASA's Stardust spacecraft in 2004 found traces of the amino acid glycine, lending credence to idea that there is life elsewhere in the universe ... "The discovery of glycine in a comet supports the idea that the fundamental... (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
'Life chemical' detected in comet Aug 19, 2009
Life chemical' detected in comet. The detection was made in material that came off Comet 81P/Wild-2 ... Scientists have identified one of the fundamental chemical buildings blocks of life in a comet for the first time, the US space agency (Nasa) reports. (BBC News -- Science)
Life-giving compounds found on comets Aug 19, 2009
Life-giving elements like those on Earth found on comets - Science - NEWS - The Times of India ... Life-giving elements like those on Earth found on comets ... WASHINGTON: Scientists have uncovered fresh evidence that life could exist beyond Earth, with research showing that comet dust contained traces of a compound vital to human existence. (India Times, India)
Building Block of Life Discovered on Comet Aug 18, 2009
Fundamental Ingredient for Life Discovered in Comet ... A fundamental ingredient for life has been discovered in a comet sample, supporting the idea that such icy objects seeded early Earth with the stuff needed to whip up living organisms ... "This is the first time an amino acid has been found in a comet," said lead researcher Jamie Elsila of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. (Fox News)
Life's Building Block Found in Comet Aug 18, 2009
Life's Building Block Found in Comet - Yahoo ... Life's Building Block Found in Comet. (Yahoo News -- Technology)
Joe Orso: Finding our health care in the sky Aug 16, 2009
As we argued last week, our planet orbited through the trail of a comet. As we worried, the sky revealed a beauty that didn t rely on a single human to engineer it or even admire it. (La Crosse Tribune, WI)
LOOKING UP: Meteors raining down this week Aug 15, 2009
They come from either disintegrated asteroids or the melt-down of comets. The swarm of meteors follow the old path of the asteroid or comet ... In late July, an amateur astronomer hobbyist discovered a new spot on Jupiter which thrilled professional astronomers around the globe; it appears to be a scar from a collision with a comet or asteroid. (Medfield Press, MA)
New hope for intelligent life elsewhere Aug 14, 2009
Cirkovic points to gamma ray bursts, nearby supernovae, and perturbations of comet clouds as possible events in the astrophysical environment of the star that can influence the biological environment on a planet. For example, when a star travels through one of the dense spiral arms of the Milky Way, both its own development and that of its planets could be disrupted by higher levels of interstellar electromagnetic radiation and cosmic rays, due to the higher frequency of star-forming regions... (MSNBC -- Technology)
Perseids Dazzle, But Don't Endanger, Astronauts Aug 13, 2009
The yearly light show, created when passes through the rocky debris stream of the comet Swift-Tuttle, is also visible to the six astronauts currently aboard the , said meteoroid expert Bill Cooke of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama (). Like their earthbound counterparts, astronauts can't see the tiny Perseids until the meteoroids hit the and burn up, Cooke said. (National Geographic)
Meteors will spark the sky (6) Aug 13, 2009
Earth will be making its annual pass through the Swift-Tuttle comet tail, amateur astronomer Dan Neal said ... The phenomena is annual because when a comet passes through Earth s orbit, a dust trail is suspended in space and Earth spins through it, he said. (Coos Bay-North Bend The World, OR)
It's not too late to watch the Perseid meteor shower Aug 13, 2009
The food is very disappointing and very over priced for (Seacoast New Hampshire)
Another chance to catch Perseid meteor shower Aug 13, 2009
Dr Chong also said the Perseids are a prolific meteor shower associated with the comet Swift-Tuttle, are usually fast, bright and occasionally leave persistent trains. They are called thus because the point they come from lies in the constellation Perseus, he said. (The Star Online, Malaysia)
Perseids: What They Are, How to Watch the Meteors, More Aug 13, 2009
Like all meteor showers, the Perseids are set in motion when a comet leaves behind a trail of rocky debris, or meteoroids, as the icy orbiter circles the sun (). Each year, Earth passes through the debris of comet Swift-Tuttle ... Within a few days of each other, U.S. astronomers Lewis Swift and Horace Parnell Tuttle separately discovered comet Swift-Tuttle during the U.S. Civil War in 1862. (National Geographic)
Tweeting Shooting Stars: World's First Mass Participation Meteor Star Party Aug 12, 2009
In this case the material comes from the tail of Comet Swift-Tuttle, which last passed near the Earth in 1992. The resulting meteors appear to originate from a radiant in the constellation of Perseus and so are named Perseids. (Science Daily)
Skywatchers to see streaking meteors Aug 12, 2009
The Perseid shower occurs every summer when the Earth's orbit crosses the path of debris thrown off by Comet Swift-Tuttle. Wally Pacholka, File. (Fresno Bee -- Nation)
Triple Asteroid System Triples Observers' Interest Aug 12, 2009
Because, in the event that a comet or asteroid comes hurtling toward Earth, he may be the guy responsible for saving the planet. He has determined a way. (Science Daily)
The Sky is Falling! Meteor Shower Tonight Aug 12, 2009
Shooting Stars Created Tonight by Comet Debris Burning Up in Atmosphere ... The meteor display, known as the Perseid shower because it appears to radiate from the constellation Perseus in the northeastern sky, is a result of Earth's orbit passing through debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle ... The occurs each year when the Earth passes through a stream of debris shed by the comet Swift-Tuttle, which orbits the sun once every 130 years or so and last passed through the inner solar system in 1992. (ABC News)
> read more Aug 12, 2009
NASA's Deep Impact mission observed a similar set of collisional by-products when its 800-pound (370-kg) copper cannonball slammed into Comet 9P/Tempel. This When Worlds Collide scenario closely follows theorists' script for the Moon's formation: a wayward Mars-size planetoid struck Earth a glancing blow, white-hot debris jetted into the surrounding space, and the solid matter that condensed afterward rapidly collected into the big ball we see today. (SkyAndTelescope.com)
Good Times at ALCON 2009 Aug 12, 2009
Richard Schmude presented an interesting comparison between images of the recent Jupiter impact (discovered by Australian amateur Anthony Wesley) with those of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9. Schmude also presented findings based on ALPO observations of Comet Lulin ... On Saturday afternoon, right after Joe Rao delivered a rousing lecture about great comets of the past 400 years, Joe informed Sue that Minor Planet 1993 SR3 has been renamed. (SkyAndTelescope.com)
Traces of planet collision found Aug 12, 2009
Though things have settled down in the Solar System today, impacts still occur, as was observed last month when a small comet or asteroid struck Jupiter. "The collision that formed our Moon would have been tremendous, enough to melt the surface of Earth," said co-author Geoff Bryden of Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. (BBC News)
Perseid meteor showers heading your way Aug 12, 2009
The night sky will sparkle with "falling stars" on Tuesday and Wednesday as Earth passes through a trail of dusty debris from the Swift-Tuttle Comet, say scientists. PARIS (AFP) - The night sky will sparkle with "falling stars" on Tuesday and Wednesday as Earth passes through a trail of dusty debris from the Swift-Tuttle Comet, say scientists ... The Perseids occur when Earth runs into a trail of dust and pebbles deposited by the comet Swift-Tuttle in its 130-year orbit around the Sun. (Yahoo! Asia News)
- Just Warming Up: Crazy? I’ll show you crazy (1) Aug 11, 2009
Comet to collide with Earth. The good news is we are getting advance warning. (El Centro Imperial Valley Press, CA)
Stargazers urged to share pictures of Perseid meteor shower Aug 11, 2009
The annual Perseid showers are caused by small bits of debris, many no bigger than a grain of sand, that enter the Earth's atmosphere when our orbit passes through the tail of the Swift-Tuttle comet. These particles travel at very high speeds, reaching up to 50km per second (32 miles per second), and burn up in the atmosphere. (BBC News -- UK)
Venus spot continues to puzzle Aug 11, 2009
Taking time-out from calibration tests, the newly refurbished Hubble Space Telescope turned to face the drama unfolding in Jupiter's atmosphere following its scrap with an impacting asteroid or comet ... In a new report released last night, and lead by Sanjay Limaye of the University of Wisconsin and Dimitri Titov of the Max Planck Institute in Germany, four possible scenarios are presented: a volcanic eruption, solar wind interaction, an icy comet impact or a previously unseen weather... (Astronomy Now Online)
Skywatchers set for meteor shower Aug 11, 2009
The Perseids occur when the Earth passes through dusty cometary debris ... The Perseid shower occurs when the Earth passes through a stream of dusty debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle ... As this cometary "grit" strikes our atmosphere, it burns up, often creating streaks of light across the sky. (BBC News)
Meteors will light night sky Aug 11, 2009
The shower is the result of the spinning Earth colliding with the dust trail of the Swift-Tuttle comet, said Gary Senn, the director of the DuPont Planetarium at the University of South Carolina Aiken. "When we see a comet, we see the tail of the comet, that is, dust particles coming off of the surface of the comet core," he said ... The comet follows a particular track, and Earth's orbit crosses its wake around the same time each year, Dr. Senn said. (The Augusta Chronicle)
Meteor shower Aug 11, 2009
The shower happens every year when the Earth passes through the trail of debris created by the comet Swift-Tuttle, first discovered in 1862. As pieces of the debris crash into the Earth's upper atmosphere, it causes the debris to fluoresce creating a streak of light we call a meteor. (Sonoma Index-Tribune, CA)
