Gourt > Science > Technology > Space > Missions > Unmanned > Asteroids and Comets (4)
A comet is a small body in the solar system that orbits the Sun and (at least occasionally) exhibits a coma (or atmosphere) and/or a tail — both due primarily to the effects of solar radiation upon the comet's nucleus, which itself is a minor planet composed of rock, dust, and ices. Due to their origins in the outer solar system and their propensity to be highly affected (or perturbed) by relatively close approaches to the major planets, comets' orbits are constantly changing. Some are moved into sungrazing orbits that destroy the comets when they near the Sun, while others are thrown out of the solar system forever.
Most comets are believed to originate in a cloud (the Oort cloud) at large distances from the Sun consisting of debris left over from the condensation of the solar nebula; the outer edges of such nebulae are cool enough that water exists in a solid (rather than gaseous) state. Asteroids originate via a different process, but very old comets which have lost all their volatile materials may come to resemble asteroids.
The word comet came to the English language through Latin cometes. From the Greek word komē, meaning "hair of the head," Aristotle first used the derivation komētēs to depict comets as "stars with hair."
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Asteroids, Comets and Meteors :: Solar System
#AGU09 Public Lecture & reception 2night @Exploratorium "Near-Earth Comets and Asteroids" w/ @NASAJPL Don Yeomans. Bus leaving MW @ 6:30 pm
theAGU (Am Geophysical Union) Fri, 18 Dec 2009 02:17:47 -0000
#AGU09 Public Lecture & reception 2night @Exploratorium "Near-Earth Comets and Asteroids" w/ @NASAJPL Don Yeomans. Bus leaving MW @ 6:30 pm
Ugh, a 6pm final and it's one of those that you know you're going to fail. I hate astronomy, just really boring. Comets and asteroids oh my
Emerald_Greene (Emerald Greene) Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:09:34 -0000
Ugh, a 6pm final and it's one of those that you know you're going to fail. I hate astronomy, just really boring. Comets and asteroids oh my
@jrishel Simpler to increase the earth's gravity and attract more asteroids and comets; it'll get bigger soon enough that way.
Hum4n (Hum4n) Wed, 16 Dec 2009 21:04:16 -0000
@jrishel Simpler to increase the earth's gravity and attract more asteroids and comets; it'll get bigger soon enough that way.
Anti-Armageddon space camera launched by NASA to map the heavens for comets and asteroids that may threaten Earth: http://bit.ly/6ShK8H
WolfgangU (Wolfgang Umana) Tue, 15 Dec 2009 15:08:13 -0000
Anti-Armageddon space camera launched by NASA to map the heavens for comets and asteroids that may threaten Earth: http://bit.ly/6ShK8H
RT @Quotes_Quotable: QUOTES NEWS: Looking for asteroids and comets that might threaten Earth: http://ow.ly/Mi4A / {CNN}
Twilkie50 (CarolWilkinson) Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:27:09 -0000
RT @Quotes_Quotable: QUOTES NEWS: Looking for asteroids and comets that might threaten Earth: http://ow.ly/Mi4A / {CNN}
QUOTES NEWS: Looking for asteroids and comets that might threaten Earth: http://ow.ly/Mi4A / {CNN}
Quotes_Quotable (Pearls of Wisdom) Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:02:07 -0000
QUOTES NEWS: Looking for asteroids and comets that might threaten Earth: http://ow.ly/Mi4A / {CNN}
67p/Churyumov-Gerasimenko - Features detailed information on the new target comet for the Rosetta mission.
ANTS Asteroid Survey - Study on Autonomous Nano Technology Swarm, a novel concept to survey the asteroid belt using an autonomously operating spacecraft swarm.
Meta Description: [ Autonomous NanoTechnology Swarm, ANTS, a new paradigm for remote mission architecture ]
CONTOUR - Spacecraft and mission profile from the National Space Science Data Center.
Meta Description: [ Comet Nucleus Tour (CONTOUR) ]
Giotto - Information on the European mission to Halley's Comet (1985-1992).
Giotto - Project documentation and scientific results of the Giotto mission, collected by the European Space Agency.
Hayabusa (Muses-C) - Japanese mission to the asteroid Itokawa. Offers spacecraft and mission profile from the National Space Science Data Center.
Meta Description: [ Hayabusa Mission ]
MUSES-C - Project homepage for the planned asteroid sample return mission, by the Japanese Institute of Space and Astronautical Science.
Near Earth Asteroid Prospector - First planned commercial deep-space mission to near earth asteroid 1998 KY26 by the SpaceDev commercial corporation. Includes overview of the mission and information on the asteroid.
Rosetta - Mission to rendezvous with the comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko and deploy a lander on its surface. News, mission overview and scientific data compiled by the project team.
Meta Description: [ Follow Europe's comet chaser Rosetta on ESA's official website, where you can find the latest news, images and animations on the spacecraft and its lander Philae.
Rosetta will rendezvous with comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and release its lander Philae onto the surface to make the most detailed... ]
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Rosetta Mission - Mission with five sensors capable of complementary measurements of the plasma environment around the comet Wirtanen. Mission and technology information.
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