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Bizarre Six-Tailed Asteroid Dumbfounds Scientists

Posted by samzenpus on from the six-tails-are-better-than-one dept.

coondoggie writes "Many images from deep space are so cool, weird and unusual it is hard to believe they are real sometimes. This is one of them. Astronomers looking deep into the asteroid belt through NASA's Hubble Space Telescope say they have spotted an asteroid, designated P/2013 P5, with six comet-like tails of dust radiating from it like spokes on a wheel or a spinning garden sprinkler."

6 of 134 comments (clear)

  1. Well, there's a simple explanation, really. by olsmeister · · Score: 5, Funny

    They're thrusters.

    1. Re:Well, there's a simple explanation, really. by ackthpt · · Score: 3, Funny

      It's powered by beans.

      --

      A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    2. Re:Well, there's a simple explanation, really. by somenickname · · Score: 5, Funny

      You joke but, earlier today there was a story about Starship Troopers on Slashdot. I know that if I still lived in Buenos Aires, I'd give serious thought to getting out of town for a while...

  2. Fox Comet! by ElectraFlarefire · · Score: 3, Funny

    Space Kitsune!
    Off to earn it's last three tails.

  3. Re:How to detect a really bad science writer... by MyHair · · Score: 4, Funny

    Try this one weird trick to understand....

  4. Re:How to detect a really bad science writer... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    I much prefer when they say "WTF is this shit?!"

    In my experience when a scientist or an engineer says "Interesting!" it is generally a good idea to step back or GTFO, it never turns out well.