Comet Lovejoy survives its encounter with the sun. The comet is seen here exiting from behind the right side of the sun, after an hour of travel through its closest approach to the sun. By tracking how the comet interacts with the sun's atmosphere, the corona, and how material from the tail moves along the sun's magnetic field lines, solar scientists hope to learn more about the corona. This movie was filmed by the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) in 171 Angstrom wavelength, which is typically shown in yellow. This video loops 3 times.
Credit: NASA/SDO
This morning, an armada of spacecraft witnessed something that many experts thought impossible. Comet Lovejoy flew through the hot atmosphere of the sun and emerged intact.
"It's absolutely astounding," says Karl Battams of the Naval Research Lab in Washington DC. "I did not think the comet's icy core was big enough to survive plunging through the several million degree solar corona for close to an hour, but Comet Lovejoy is still with us."
The comet's close encounter was recorded by at least five spacecraft: NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory and twin STEREO probes, Europe's Proba2 microsatellite, and the ESA/NASA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory. The most dramatic footage so far comes from SDO, which saw the comet go in (below) and then come back out again (above).
Comet Lovejoy - View of Solar Approach: Another instrument watching for the comet was the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), which adjusted its cameras in order to watch the trajectory. Not only does this help with comet research—such as how big the comet is and what it's made of -- but it may also help orient instruments on SDO. Since the scientists know where the comet is based on other spacecraft, they can finely determine the position of SDO's mirrors. This movie from SDO from the evening of Dec 15, 2011 shows Comet Lovejoy moving in toward the sun. This video loops 3 times.
At the time of discovery, Comet Lovejoy appeared to be at least ten times larger than the usual Kreutz sungrazer, somewhere in the in the 100 to 200 meter range. In light of today's events, researchers are re-thinking those numbers.
"I'd guess the comet's core must have been at least 500 meters in diameter; otherwise it couldn't have survived so much solar heating," says Matthew Knight. "A significant fraction of that mass would have been lost during the encounter. The remains are probably much smaller."
This morning, an armada of spacecraft witnessed something that many experts thought impossible. Comet Lovejoy flew through the hot atmosphere of the sun and emerged intact.
"It's absolutely astounding," says Karl Battams of the Naval Research Lab in Washington DC. "I did not think the comet's icy core was big enough to survive plunging through the several million degree solar corona for close to an hour, but Comet Lovejoy is still with us."
The comet's close encounter was recorded by at least five spacecraft: NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory and twin STEREO probes, Europe's Proba2 microsatellite, and the ESA/NASA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory. The most dramatic footage so far comes from SDO, which saw the comet go in (below) and then come back out again (above).
Comet Lovejoy - View of Solar Approach: Another instrument watching for the comet was the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), which adjusted its cameras in order to watch the trajectory. Not only does this help with comet research—such as how big the comet is and what it's made of -- but it may also help orient instruments on SDO. Since the scientists know where the comet is based on other spacecraft, they can finely determine the position of SDO's mirrors. This movie from SDO from the evening of Dec 15, 2011 shows Comet Lovejoy moving in toward the sun. This video loops 3 times.
Credit: NASA/SDO
In the SDO movies, the comet's tail wriggles wildly as the comet plunges through the sun's hot atmosphere only 120,000 km above the stellar surface. This could be a sign that the comet was buffeted by plasma waves coursing through the corona. Or perhaps the tail was bouncing back and forth off great magnetic loops known to permeate the sun's atmosphere. No one knows.
"This is all new," says Battams. "SDO is giving us our first look at comets traveling through the sun's atmosphere. How the two interact is cutting-edge research."
"The motions of the comet material in the sun's magnetic field are just fascinating," adds SDO project scientist Dean Pesnell of the Goddard Space Flight Center. "The abrupt changes in direction reminded me of how the solar wind affected the tail of Comet Encke in 2007 (view movie)."
Comet Lovejoy was discovered on Dec. 2, 2011, by amateur astronomer Terry Lovejoy of Australia. Researchers quickly realized that the new find was a member of the Kreutz family of sungrazing comets. Named after the German astronomer Heinrich Kreutz, who first studied them, Kreutz sungrazers are fragments of a single giant comet that broke apart back in the 12th century (probably the Great Comet of 1106). Kreutz sungrazers are typically small (~10 meters wide) and numerous. The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory sees one falling into the sun every few days.
In the SDO movies, the comet's tail wriggles wildly as the comet plunges through the sun's hot atmosphere only 120,000 km above the stellar surface. This could be a sign that the comet was buffeted by plasma waves coursing through the corona. Or perhaps the tail was bouncing back and forth off great magnetic loops known to permeate the sun's atmosphere. No one knows.
"This is all new," says Battams. "SDO is giving us our first look at comets traveling through the sun's atmosphere. How the two interact is cutting-edge research."
"The motions of the comet material in the sun's magnetic field are just fascinating," adds SDO project scientist Dean Pesnell of the Goddard Space Flight Center. "The abrupt changes in direction reminded me of how the solar wind affected the tail of Comet Encke in 2007 (view movie)."
Comet Lovejoy was discovered on Dec. 2, 2011, by amateur astronomer Terry Lovejoy of Australia. Researchers quickly realized that the new find was a member of the Kreutz family of sungrazing comets. Named after the German astronomer Heinrich Kreutz, who first studied them, Kreutz sungrazers are fragments of a single giant comet that broke apart back in the 12th century (probably the Great Comet of 1106). Kreutz sungrazers are typically small (~10 meters wide) and numerous. The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory sees one falling into the sun every few days.
Comet Lovejoy blazes toward the sun and its tail wiggles as it interacts with the solar wind. By the end of the day on December 15, 2011, the comet will graze some some 75,000 miles above the sun's surface through the several million degree solar corona, and quite likely evaporate. Five different satellites -- the Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO), the Solar Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), Hinode, and Proba -- are trying to watch its final approach to the sun. This movie was recorded by STEREO using the Sun Earth Connection Coronal and Heliospheric Investigation (SECCHI) instrument.
Credit: NASA/STEREO/NRL
At the time of discovery, Comet Lovejoy appeared to be at least ten times larger than the usual Kreutz sungrazer, somewhere in the in the 100 to 200 meter range. In light of today's events, researchers are re-thinking those numbers.
"I'd guess the comet's core must have been at least 500 meters in diameter; otherwise it couldn't have survived so much solar heating," says Matthew Knight. "A significant fraction of that mass would have been lost during the encounter. The remains are probably much smaller."
This movie from the Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) provided the first space-based views of Comet Lovejoy on December 11. The comet moves in from the bottom right. (The moving red line is an artifact caused by the planet Mercury, which is off camera.)
Credit: NASA/NRL/STEREO
SOHO and NASA's twin STEREO probes are monitoring the comet as it recedes from the sun. It is still very bright and should remain in range of the spacecrafts' cameras for several days to come.
What happens next is anyone's guess.
"There is still a possibility that Comet Lovejoy will start to fragment," continues Battams. "It' been through a tremendously traumatic event; structurally, it could be extremely weak. On the other hand, it could hold itself together and disappear back into the recesses of the solar system."
"It's hard to say," agrees Knight. "There has been so little work on what happens to sungrazing comets after perihelion (closest approach). This continues to be fascinating."
These two images were taken by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) and show comet Lovejoy heading in toward the sun (top) and then emerging back out the other side (bottom).
What happens next is anyone's guess.
"There is still a possibility that Comet Lovejoy will start to fragment," continues Battams. "It' been through a tremendously traumatic event; structurally, it could be extremely weak. On the other hand, it could hold itself together and disappear back into the recesses of the solar system."
"It's hard to say," agrees Knight. "There has been so little work on what happens to sungrazing comets after perihelion (closest approach). This continues to be fascinating."
These two images were taken by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) and show comet Lovejoy heading in toward the sun (top) and then emerging back out the other side (bottom).
Credit: NASA/SOHO
Contacts and sources:
Dr. Tony Phillips
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
For additional media of Comet Lovejoy's journey, please visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunearth/news/track-comet.html
Contacts and sources:
Dr. Tony Phillips
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
For additional media of Comet Lovejoy's journey, please visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunearth/news/track-comet.html
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