Deep space COMET FLYBY: First PICS
NASA's former Deep Impact comet-bomber space probe, since renamed EPOXI* and reassigned to rendezvous with a second space snowball, has made a successful close pass by the comet Hartley 2. Comet Hartley 2 pictured by the EPOXI mission. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UMD Extraplanetary spaceball paparazzo-shot wondrousness. "The …
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19000 miles
LOHAN's going to have to watch out for stuff like this.
"3,470mph of velocity"
I get the point, but in a science article it'd be better to use terms like 'velocity' properly. I think you should have said it picked up an extra 3,470mph of speed. Velocity is a combination of speed and direction.
Thanks for the article, though. It was interesting.
Right you are Tom -
another question is why the Reg insists on using (the US version of) Imperial units in a science article, rather than using SI units. A latent John Wayne complex ?...
Henri
British
Why us Imperial units? Because that's how us brits measure speed.
@mhenriday
Are you that guy who drives really slowly around town, at a constant 30km/h ? If you are, I have some news for you.
Frank, I'm usually on my bike ;
but on a good day without too much headwind, I can maintain 30 km/h....
Henri
Awesome picture
I hope Hollywood are paying attention this time around so that we're spared any further Deep Impact-style travesties
@MeRp
Nope. Even turning it upside down and squinting really hard I can't see that one.
I'd lay off the little blue ones for a while if I were you........
Stardate 210101104:055947
Captain's log evacuated. A spiky one.
Let me get this straight...
It's been renamed to "EPOXI", which stands for:
Extrasolar
Planet
Observation and Characterization plus Deep Impact
eXtended
Investigation
I daresay the art of forming logical and intuitive acronyms is officially dead.
Maybe not...
It could be characterised as a:
Remote
Extended
Space
Investigation
Node
could it not?
KFC conspiracy theory #1
It's obviously a chicken drumstick :-o
Higest mountains in the solar system...
Well if the highest mountain is measured as a proportion of radius from the mean geode then this things a record breaker!
Hartley 2
Hartley 2?
Sonorous voice: "Just when you thought no-one cared about Fly Fishing..."
mine's the one with the slim volume in the pocket
Impressive but somehow not...
Whenever I see this sort of thing it impresses the hell out of me that here is a photograph taken thousands of miles away in space. On the other hand the actual images are always something of a letdown. Space is really excting in theory, but the reality is somewhat dull.
Any space boffins care to comment?
But for the mere matter* of getting to within 700 km of the comet I could take this picture with with my very amateur telescope and B&W camera setup.
Surely there is a huge choice of high definition space rated optics and sensors to choose from after all this time spent developing satellite based earth imaging.
Pig ignorant armchair space experts would like to know.
* it impresses the hell out of me too.
I, for one
welcome our new cometary chicken-drumstick overlords
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