Deep Impact Shows Comet Scientists Something New
Posted: October 23, 2010 Filed under: American Astronomical Society, astronomers, Astronomical Societies, astronomy, comet Hartley 2, comets, Deep Impact, Earth, EPOXI mission, Goddard Flight Center, International Astronomical Union, John Hopkins University, NASA, NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft, National Solar Observatory, Royal Astronomical Society, Sol, The Earth, the solar system | Tags: astronomers, astronomy, comet Hartley 2, comets, Deep Impact, EPOXI mission, NASA Leave a comment »
- The EPOXI mission is just the first step
Deep Impact approaches comet Hartley 2 and will arrive at its nearest location on November 4
NASA’s EPOXI mission is currently on a journey to comet Hartley 2 and Deep Impact as this mission is more commonly referred too will arrive at its nearest spot to this icy world on November 4. NASA was using imagers on Deep Impact during the days between September 9-17 to get a view of comet Hartley 2 before the spacecraft arrives on location and the things they saw has NASA’s comet scientists shaking their heads. Apparently, comet scientists observed the characteristic increase in the release of cyanide associated with comets as they travel through the inner solar system, by a factor of five or six times during this observation period in September. What they didn’t see was the expected increase in dust emissions due to this five fold increase in the release of cyanide, which is something new according to comet scientists, who are now busy trying to figure out what they actually saw.
Why would the difference be so important to comet scientists as Deep Impact approaches comet Hartley 2? Scientists hate unknown parameters being suddenly thrown into their well calculated plans and this discovery certainly could affect the mission in ways we’ll possibly never hear about. Where did the dust go? The dust obviously didn’t go anywhere and is still close to comet Hartley 2, which could effect the quality of the view observers will get of Hartley 2. This will especially be true for observers on Earth, who now that they know about this fact can certainly take this fact into consideration. Otherwise, this fact is going to skew your observations and your interpretation of what you’re actually seeing when trying to view comet Hartley 2 from Earth. Certainly, this isn’t likely to seriously affect the mission as a whole, and Deep Impact will surely get some spectacular pictures of comet Hartley 2 as it approaches and recedes from the sun.
The interesting thing about comets releasing significant amounts of cyanide is that cyanide is a carbon-based molecule that certainly could have been brought to Earth on comets like Hartley 2 billions of years in the past. Comets haven’t changed since this time and have been hitting the Earth and releasing cyanide since this time, which brings up interesting questions that NASA is hoping the EPOXI mission and follow up missions to other comets is going to answer in the years ahead.
October’s Early Morning Sky Puts on a Show
Posted: October 10, 2010 Filed under: American Astronomical Society, astronomers, Astronomical Societies, astronomy, Comet 1P/Halley, comets, Draconid meteorite shower, entertainment, Goddard Flight Center, International Astronomical Union, John Hopkins University, meteorites, NASA, National Solar Observatory, Orionid meteorite shower, Royal Astronomical Society | Tags: astronomers, astronomy, Comet 1P/Halley, comets, Draconid meteorite shower, meteorites, NASA, Orionid meteorite shower Leave a comment »Comet Halley dust rains down upon Earth in the early mornings of October
Periodic trips through the inner solar system has left a little dust behind
Orionid meteorites are small dust grains thrown off by Comet 1P/Halley, during its many trips through the inner solar system. These dust grains are traveling at a speed generally in the area of 70 km/second, at this speed the surrounding air will glow with heat as a dust grain travels through Earth’s atmosphere, and viewers will a brief flash as the meteorite vaporizes in the atmosphere. Astronomers estimate that about 25 million particles of comet dust enter the Earth’s atmosphere worldwide on a daily basis, burning up as meteorites and adding hundreds of tons of comet dust. During a meteorite shower Earth is being bombarded by numerous grains of comet dust as the Earth travels through the orbit of a comet. Meteorite showers occur annually due to the fact that the Earth travels through the orbit of a comet at the same time each year. Typically viewers can see a few meteorites each hour on a clear night, but viewers can always be treated to an extra special show.
During a good performance viewers could see upwards of twenty meteorites per hour radiating from one direction in the sky generally, just as heavy rain or snow appears to radiate from one direction in front of a moving vehicle. The Earth is moving relative to the comet dust, as a result more comet dust will hit the Earth’s atmosphere in the part facing in the direction of the Earth’s movement, and viewers will get a better show in the pre-dawn sky, when part of their sky is facing in the direction of Earth’s rotation.
The Orionids are comet dust left behind by Comet 1P/Halley
Begin Planning Your Journey to Comet 103P/Hartley
Posted: September 13, 2010 Filed under: astronomers, astronomy, Comet 103P/Hartley, comets, Malcolm Hartley, NASA, NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft, Sol, the solar system | Tags: astronomers, astronomy, Cassiopeia, Comet 103P/Hartley, comets, Malcolm Hartley, NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft, Sol, space, the Earth, the solar system, time machine to the stars Leave a comment »Board your time machine to the stars near the end of October
Comet 103P/Hartley leaves a trail as it travels through the inner solar system
September is the time for you and the kids to begin planning a journey to a celestial body that will be at its closest point to Earth and Sol, sometime near the end of October. Comet 103P/Hartley has been in the news, of late, as NASA’s Deep Impact spacecraft will fly by Comet 103P/Hartley, in the first part of November. Observers boarding their time-machine-to-the-stars at this time should get a nice view of Comet 103P/Hartley and it might even be possible to view this celestial object with the naked eye, depending on the environmental conditions at the time of viewing. A good pair of viewing binoculars should give viewers a great view of Comet 103P/Hartley, but your time machine to the stars is the best way to journey to Comet 103P/Hartley, to have a look at a celestial object that only becomes viewable during specific periods of time. Comet 103P/Hartley is returning to Earth for the fourth time, since Australian astronomer Malcolm Hartley discovered her in 1986. A short-period comet that loops through the inner solar system, Comet 103P/Hartley’s space journey takes about 6.5 years to complete one orbit. You should arrive at Comet 103P/Hartley just before the arrival of NASA’s Deep Impact spacecraft.
During the visit by NASA’s Deep Impact spacecraft, space scientists will use the information and data provided by on-board cameras and instruments to help them pierce the shroud surrounding the comet and hopefully determine the source of dusty jets viewed on Comet 103P/Hartley. Dusty jets that have been dancing in the dreams of space scientists, since they first viewed them through Earth-bound telescopes, which show the effect as a pinprick of light at the center of the comet’s glow. Astronomers and space scientists refer to this effect as a comet’s “false nucleus”, which hides the comets real surface from view.
Comet 103P/Hartley is becoming more visible to star gazers as it approaches the Earth and Sun. This celestial object could reach magnitude 10 near the end of September, which will make viewing easier for star gazers, and allow space scientists to study this comet closer. The best time for star gazers to view Comet 103P/Hartley will be under a dark sky starting around September 24. Comet 103P/Hartley will be in the arms of Cassiopeia at this time, south of Cassiopeia’s w-shaped asterism, and will be viewable throughout the night.
Blaze Your Name in the Night Sky
Posted: September 12, 2010 Filed under: comets, Earth, Hale-Bopp, Haley's Comet, Kuiper Belt, NASA, September 2010, Sol, The Earth, the Milky Way galaxy, the solar system, the Universe | Tags: Alan Hale, astronomy, comets, Hale-Bopp, Haley's Comet, human history, Journey to the Beginning of Space and Time, Kuiper Belt, space history, Tom Bopp Leave a comment »Celestial bodies in the night’s sky are often named after their discoverers
Take a look at the night sky above you and name a few of the celestial objects you know in your head. Would you like to leave your name written in the annals of astronomy and human history? One of the greatest honours for an astronomer is to have their name adorn a celestial body in the night sky. Look up into the night sky and many of the stellar bodies you see will have been named in honour of their discoverer, a famous figure of history or science, or will have been given a designation of some type to distinguish them from other stellar bodies. Humans will forever speak of the distant ice balls at the fringe of the solar system we refer too as the Kuiper Belt and Haley’s Comet.
Halley's Comet will be seen again in a few years
True, the chances of a celestial body in the night sky being named for a particular amateur astronomer is remote, at best, considering the competition and the fact that the decision is made by other powers in the universe. The possibility of this certainly increases for a professional astronomer making a significant discovery, but the final decision is still in the hands of other powers. There are a lot more amateur astronomers looking at the night sky on a nightly basis than professional astronomers, and this fact alone is going to make it likely that amateur astronomers will make significant contributions to the history of astronomy.
It certainly wouldn’t be surprising if a professional astronomer or two have spent a few moments in contemplation of a celestial body being named in their honour or moment in time when they could be making astronomy history. Speculating astronomers might have even gone to the trouble of choosing a name for their discovery? The actual naming of newly discovered celestial bodies is actually conducted by other powers in the world of astronomy.
This doesn’t mean that amateur astronomers aren’t honoured by having their names adorn a celestial body in the night sky. Tom Bopp, an amateur star-gazer will forever live-on in the minds of humans as the discoverer of the biggest comet of the twentieth century, Hale-Bopp, which was also independently discovered by astronomer Alan Hale.
Hale-Bopp's two tails are in view here
The only way you can hope to leave your name written in the history of astronomy is to spend time watching the night sky above you. Every time you board your time machine to the stars soar upward and out into the cosmos, you could find something that no human has seen before.
Join me every night as we’ll “Journey to the Beginning of Time and Space” and go on a voyage of discovery that will take us to unknown parts of the universe.
