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Jet! Rosetta’s Comet Is Feeling The Heat As Gas and Dust Erupts From Surface
http://www.universetoday.com/116732/jet-rosettas-comet-is-feeling-the-heat-as-gas-and-dust-erupts-from-surface/ ^ | on November 26, 2014 | Elizabeth Howell

Posted on 11/26/2014 4:06:25 PM PST by BenLurkin

As the European Space Agency scurries to find the final resting place of the Philae lander, Rosetta continues normal operations above the comet and will keep tracking it through 2015. Rosetta is the first orbiter to stick around near a comet, which will allow scientists an unprecedented chance to see a comet change from up close as the Sun’s heat and particles affect it. Could there be an atmosphere starting up?

“At the bottom of the mosaic, the non-illuminated part of the comet stands out as a silhouette against the broader diffuse emission coming from the comet’s coma,” ESA stated. “There are hints of a diffuse ‘atmosphere’ close to the surface of the comet seen along the illuminated edges, but this could be due to scattering in the NAVCAM optics. The large number of small white blobs in the image are likely specks of dust or other small objects in the vicinity of the comet.”

(Excerpt) Read more at universetoday.com ...


TOPICS: Astronomy; Science
KEYWORDS: churyumovgerasimenko; comet; comet67p; philae; rosetta
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1 posted on 11/26/2014 4:06:25 PM PST by BenLurkin
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To: BenLurkin

This is an incredible thing to be witness to. Bear that in mind.


2 posted on 11/26/2014 4:11:31 PM PST by dr_lew
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To: BenLurkin
Image from the article:


3 posted on 11/26/2014 4:11:39 PM PST by Straight Vermonter (Posting from deep behind the Maple Curtain)
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To: Straight Vermonter

Thnx!


4 posted on 11/26/2014 4:12:01 PM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: BenLurkin

Did they lose the lander ?


5 posted on 11/26/2014 4:12:51 PM PST by Patton@Bastogne
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To: dr_lew

It really is and since this comet seems to have a mixed composition — I wonder if the exact mechanics of a comet’s double tail will get imaged.


6 posted on 11/26/2014 4:13:57 PM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: Patton@Bastogne

That or lost track of it.


7 posted on 11/26/2014 4:14:44 PM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: BenLurkin

did the lander bounce off... and is on a magic carpet ride?..


8 posted on 11/26/2014 4:19:57 PM PST by hosepipe (" This propaganda has been edited (specifically) to include some fully orbed hyperbole.. ")
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To: Patton@Bastogne

Not lost exactly. Just hoping it will get enough sunlight to be operational when it gets closer to the sun.


9 posted on 11/26/2014 4:23:34 PM PST by cripplecreek (You can't half ass conservatism.)
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To: BenLurkin
I keep reminding myself...

This was cutting edge technology when this mission was launched...

10 posted on 11/26/2014 4:24:08 PM PST by kingu (Everything starts with slashing the size and scope of the federal government.)
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To: BenLurkin
Can we see the flag that Louis Armstrong planted???


11 posted on 11/26/2014 4:24:43 PM PST by Organic Panic
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To: Patton@Bastogne; BenLurkin; hosepipe

IIRC, the lander bounced because the harpoons didn’t fire and it fell in to a crevice where the solar panels couldn’t receive sunlight.

They got about 90 minutes of science out of it.


12 posted on 11/26/2014 4:25:15 PM PST by Crazieman (Article V or National Divorce. The only solutions now.)
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To: Patton@Bastogne

They think the lander bounced twice and ended up on its side in a canyon where it is getting very little light to recharge its batteries.

It was able to send quite a bit of data before the batteries died, and they are hoping that as it gets closer the increased amount of light reaching its solar cells will re-energize the machine and it will start collecting and transmitting data again.

Still, even landing the thing was an amazing feat, and the little data they got is still far more than we knew beforehand.


13 posted on 11/26/2014 4:25:21 PM PST by Don W (To laugh, perhaps to dream...)
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To: Patton@Bastogne
Did they lose the lander ?

The lander harpoon spike failed to fire, so the lander bounced 3 times (in very low gravity) and they aren't really sure exactly where it is.

It is too small to be 'resolved' in the images coming back from the Rosetta Stone.

14 posted on 11/26/2014 4:25:26 PM PST by UCANSEE2 (Lost my tagline on Flight MH370. Sorry for the inconvenience.)
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To: BenLurkin

“I, for one, welcome our new rubber duckie overlords.”


15 posted on 11/26/2014 4:25:36 PM PST by Zeppo ("Happy Pony is on - and I'm NOT missing Happy Pony")
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To: BenLurkin

After Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow night, gas and dust will be rising from my pants. Does that make me a comet or just a shooting star?


16 posted on 11/26/2014 4:47:20 PM PST by MadMax, the Grinning Reaper
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To: Organic Panic

Didn’t your momma teach you it isn’t nice to pick on the mentally handicapped.


17 posted on 11/26/2014 5:06:38 PM PST by Pontiac (The welfare state must fail because it is contrary to human nature and diminishes the human spirit.)
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To: Straight Vermonter

That’s odd; it doesn’t LOOK like a snowball. :-)


18 posted on 11/26/2014 5:09:39 PM PST by ForGod'sSake (What part of "Fundamentally transforming the United States of America" don't the LIV understand?)
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To: Swordmaker

Latest thread...


19 posted on 11/26/2014 5:11:54 PM PST by ForGod'sSake (What part of "Fundamentally transforming the United States of America" don't the LIV understand?)
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To: kingu

I still carry mine. Haha


20 posted on 11/26/2014 5:14:00 PM PST by Straight Vermonter (Posting from deep behind the Maple Curtain)
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