Search results for comets

Astronomy Sep 16, 2019

The visible spectrum of C/2019 Q4 (Borisov), the first confirmed interstellar comet

Shortly before dawn on September 13th, Julia de León, Miquel Serra-Ricart, Javier Licandro, all members of IAC's solar system Group, and Carlos Raúl de la Fuente Marcos, from the Complutense University of Madrid, obtained ...

Astronomy Sep 13, 2019

Gemini observatory captures multicolor image of first-ever interstellar comet

The first-ever comet from beyond our Solar System has been successfully imaged by the Gemini Observatory in multiple colors. The image of the newly discovered object, denoted C/2019 Q4 (Borisov), was obtained on the night ...

Space Exploration Sep 13, 2019

Newly discovered comet is likely interstellar visitor

A newly discovered comet has excited the astronomical community this week because it appears to have originated from outside the solar system. The object—designated C/2019 Q4 (Borisov) - was discovered on Aug. 30, 2019, by ...

Astronomy Sep 9, 2019

All comets in the solar system might come from the same place

All comets might share their place of birth, new research says. For the first time ever, astronomer Christian Eistrup applied chemical models to fourteen well-known comets, surprisingly finding a clear pattern. His publication ...

Space Exploration Aug 13, 2019

Image: Small object spotted orbiting 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

Last week marked five years since ESA's Rosetta probe arrived at its target, a comet named 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (or 67P/C-G). Tomorrow, 13 August, it will be four years since the comet, escorted by Rosetta, reached its ...

Space Exploration Jul 1, 2019

How historic Jupiter comet impact led to planetary defense

Twenty-five years ago, humanity first witnessed a collision between a comet and a planet. From July 16 to 22, 1994, enormous pieces of the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 (SL9), discovered just a year prior, crashed into Jupiter over ...

Biochemistry Jun 28, 2019

Did comet impacts jump-start life on Earth?

Comets screaming through the atmosphere of early Earth at tens of thousands of miles per hour likely contained measurable amounts of protein-forming amino acids. Upon impact, these amino acids self-assembled into significantly ...

Space Exploration Jun 24, 2019

Space physicists send instrument to target comets

Space physicists at Umeå University, Sweden, develop measuring instruments for the spaceship Comet Interceptor. The vessel has been selected to be part of the European Space Agency's ESA program to target comets that have ...

Space Exploration Jun 20, 2019

ESA's new mission to intercept a comet

"Comet Interceptor" has been selected as ESA's new fast-class mission in its Cosmic Vision Programme. Comprising three spacecraft, it will be the first to visit a truly pristine comet or other interstellar object that is ...

Space Exploration Jun 10, 2019

There's only a 1 in 7000 chance an asteroid will hit the Earth in September

Whenever scientists announce an upcoming close encounter with an asteroid, certain corners of the internet light up like the synaptic rush that accompanies a meth binge, with panicky headlines shouted straight from the brain ...

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