|
Explanation: The most prolific comet discovering instrument in history rides aboard the sun-staring SOHO spacecraft, 1.5 million kilometers sunward of planet Earth. Of course, most of these SOHO comets have been sungrazers - like the one illustrated in the dramatic montage above. Three frames taken hours apart on October 23rd, show bright SOHO comet number 367 plunging toward the fiery solar surface, its tail streaming away from the Sun located just beyond the left hand border. Each panel spans about one million kilometers at the distance of the Sun. From bottom to top, the comet's tail grows as the intensifying solar radiation heats the frozen comet material and increases the outflow of gas and dust. Because of their orbits, sungrazers are believed to belong to a family of comets produced by the breakup of a single much larger comet. Coincidentally, this sungrazer was discovered shortly after solar active regions blasted out clouds of energetic particles, like those that triggered the recent spectacular auroral storms. And like all SOHO sungrazers so far, comet number 367 was not seen to survive its close solar encounter.
|
January February March April May June July August September October November December |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: comet - sungrazer - SOHO
Publications with words: comet - sungrazer - SOHO
See also:
- APOD: 2024 June 4 Á Comet Pons Brooks Develops Opposing Tails
- APOD: 2024 April 17 Á Total Eclipse and Comets
- APOD: 2024 April 8 Á The Changing Ion Tail of Comet Pons Brooks
- Comet Pons-Brooks at Night
- APOD: 2024 March 18 Á Comet Pons Brooks Swirling Coma
- Comet 12P/Pons Brooks in Northern Spring
- Structure in the Tail of Comet 12P/Pons Brooks