Rosetta Spacecraft Catches Comet Eruption

An anonymous reader writes: On March 12, the Rosetta spacecraft was imaging Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko from a distance of 75 kilometers (46 miles) and by pure chance it spotted an eruption of dusty material from the shaded nucleus. Long-duration spacecraft are essential if we are to fully understand the evolution of a comet as it gradually heats up during its approach to the sun. And it just so happens that Rosetta is always in orbit around 67P's nucleus, ready to spot any transient event that could erupt at any time on the surface

This latest event focuses on the comet's shaded underside. It is assumed that some sunlight slowly heated an outcrop, providing enough energy to sublimate subsurface ices, ejecting vapor and dust as a jet. The transient jet was imaged and measured by Rosetta's scientific imaging system OSIRIS. There is also the possibility that a wave of heating passed through the icy material, eventually producing a more explosive jet event.

Comments

Re:"Comet Farts, NASA sniffs"

[Anonymous Coward]

you mean ESA?

Pure chance?

[Eddi3]

"By pure chance," you say? If the damn thing was designed to orbit and observe, how is it pure chance that at some point we saw something interesting?

Re:Pure chance?

[rmdingler]

It's akin to the recorded footage of most security cameras:

hours upon hours and then more hours of mind numbing boredom spontaneously broken up by a sensational robbery, kidnapping, or sublimation.

Re:pure chance?

[oobayly]

No, I'd call it hard graft.

does that title look like a Porn video recap?

[turkeydance]

maybe i spend too much time...well, you know....

Re:does that title look like a Porn video recap?

[Maritz]

Yes we know, and yes you do; don't we all.

And it just so happens ?

[YrWrstNtmr]

"And it just so happens", that is was designed to be in orbit around this comet. It wasn't just shot up at random, and "just happened" to fall into orbit around this comet.

Who writes this crap?

Trajectory

[Anonymous Coward]

Does the sudden change in the mass from the melt in the comet and the effect of the jets change its velocity and trajectory?

Re:Trajectory

[Jiro]

Basically, yes. This is what's referred to as "non-gravitational forces" (you can Google the term, but Wikipedia doesn't seem to have an article). It makes it harder to predict the orbits of comets under some circumstances.

Re:"Comet Farts, NASA sniffs"

[Tablizer]

Doh!

Dice, invent an Undo, and I'll stop ragging on you.

pure chance?

[bloodhawk]

If I spend 24x7 staring in your bathroom window you don't call it "pure chance" that I happened to see you taking a shower.

Can it dodge?

[jbmartin6]

Here's hoping one of these jets doesn't hit Rosetta and send it spinning off into deep space like Buck Rogers.

Re:Can it dodge?

[cusco]

Emily Lakdawalla's blog has quite a bit of good information about what's going on. With pretty pictures.

More problematic than jets coming from the comet (which are pretty diffuse and low speed in reality) is that twice passing comet particles have come close enough to be mistaken for the stars that the spacecraft use to orient themselves. Since it's moving past so fast the spacecraft assumes that something is wrong and puts everything in Safe mode.

Electric Comet?

[trout007]

Can we finally admit the Electric Universe guys are at least right about comets? This "jet" is coming from the dark side of the comet? Doesn't seem likely.

Re:Electric Comet?

[cusco]

Well, if the Electric Universe guys had been correct about even a single prediction or observation since Velikovsky and company came up with it it might be easier to accept. For now it's just quackery, of the same level of science as homeopathy or phrenology.

Re:Electric Comet?

[Maritz]

I'm afraid Electric Universe is looking about as correct as the turtles all the way down theory.

Re:Some amazing fakery.

[Maritz]

Richard Hoagland? You forgot to log in Richard!!!

Re:space unicorns and a magical rainbows

[Maritz]

I find it hard to understand why this kind of accounting is still considered science. The standard model of comets is so wildy wrong, it's absolutely laughable. Comets are electrical, as is the universe. The sooner we all get that, the sooner w don't have to listen to ludicrous "science" telling us that although it looks like a rock, that it's darker than carbon, lighter than sponge, and still has water under pressure causing jets from a nucleus that clearly sees little sunlight, and has a surface temperature so cold, you can't touch it. Yet somehow that translates to heat, expansion, and gas jets erupting out.

No, this sucker's electrical! We expected ice, and when we tried to anchor to it, the surface didn't give way - not quite spongy carbon then? (if you read about the calculated mass!) Seriously, these "scientists" need to get a life, bite the big one, and accept they've been wrong for so long it's laughable. Accept that the Electric universe is the only way forwards for now at least - and embrace it. Then we'll stop getting all these "surprises" and "freak events" and "luck", and start to see it for what it really is.

www.thunderbolts.info

You forgot the bit about the dish running away with the spoon.

Re: space unicorns and a magical rainbows

[Maritz]

That is all I know.

That is all you think; sadly for you, you have no credibility, or evidence for your alternative (do you even posit one?) I find them persuasive, and you not at all. Water is the most common compound in the universe. It's painfully fucking obvious that comets are dirty snowballs. Only a ignorant crank or slashdot armchair blowhard would disagree without presenting something contradictory.