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NASA Spacecraft Snaps New Photo Of Potential ‘Comet Of The Century’

Saturday, March 30, 2013 16:50
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(Before It's News)

The Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope aboard NASA’s Swift imaged comet ISON (center) on Jan. 30, when it was located about 3.3 degrees from the bright star Castor in the constellation Gemini. At the time of this 5.5-minute optical exposure, ISON was about 5,000 times fainter than the limit of human vision. Image released March 29, 2013.
CREDIT: NASA/Swift/D. Bodewits, UMCP

Live Science

A NASA spacecraft scanning for the most powerful explosions in the universe has captured a photo of Comet ISON, an icy wanderer that could potentially dazzle stargazers when it swings close to the sun later this year.

NASA’s Swift satellite, which is typically used to track intense gamma-ray bursts from distant stars, photographed Comet ISON on Jan. 30, with the space agency unveiling the photo today (March 29). By tracking the comet over the last two months, Swift has allowed astronomers to learn new details about how large the comet is and how fast it is spewing out gas and dust.

“Comet ISON has the potential to be among the brightest comets of the last 50 years, which gives us a rare opportunity to observe its changes in great detail and over an extended period,” said Lead Investigator Dennis Bodewits, an astronomer with University of Maryland at College Park (UMCP) who helped obtain the new image.

Some astronomers have predicted that ISON could be the “Comet of the Century” when it makes its closest approach to the sun in late November. But a recent analysis found that the comet is not brightening as expected, and may have a ways to go to meet such expectations.

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Total 5 comments
  • Paul Gilbert

    Nostradamus
    famine, war and disease. In the sky will be seen a fire, dragging a tail of sparks
    The great star will burn for seven days

    Mother Shipton
    For seven days and seven nights, Man will watch this awesome sight
    fiery dragon will cross the sky

  • LavenderRose

    look up planet x so many photos are better than this omg…. whats up

  • Can’t wait- bring it

  • Hey Lavender Planet X is a bunch of crap.This is a story about a comet, why would I deceive them with planet X pictures for.Looks like we have an obnoxious trouble maker at BIN and you just started ,you can get off your high horse .Keep your links out of the comment section that’s annoying, as you are!

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