Evolution of comet Tempel 1

The images obtained at the VLT show that after the impact, the morphology of Comet Tempel 1 had changed, with the appearance of a new plume-like structure, produced by matter being ejected with a speed of about 700 to 1,000 km/h. This structure, however, diffused away in the following days, being more and more diluted and less visible, the comet taking again the appearance it had before the impact. Further images obtained with, among others, the adaptive optics NACO instrument on the Very Large Telescope, showed the same jets that were visible prior to impact, demonstrating that the comet activity survived widely unaffected by the spacecraft crash.

Bildnachweis:

ESO

Über das Bild

ID:eso0523a
Typ:Beobachtung
Veröffentlichungsdatum:14. Juli 2005
Dazugehörige Veröffentlichungen:eso0523
Größe:1280 x 539 px

Über das Objekt

Name:Comet Tempel 1
Typ:Solar System : Interplanetary Body : Comet
Kategorie:Solar System

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Farben & Filter

SpektralbereichTeleskop
Infrarot
Near-IR
Very Large Telescope
NACO