...Halley’s Comet *Halley’s Comet is a comet that appears in the sky about every 76 years *Halley’s Comet has become the best-known comet because it returns more often than most comets and usually be seen without the aid of a telescope *Halley’s Comet orbits the Sun in a long oval path that brings it close to the Sun about every 76 years *Halley’s Comet was named for the English astronomer Edmond Halley *Astronomers expect the Halley’s Comet next return in 2061 When the comet goes back in space *as a comet gets farther away from the Sun it gets colder *when it gets colder not as much ice melts and not as much gas and dust is released then the head and tail start to shrink *After a while the comet freezes until it gets closer to the Sun Ancient times *Comets are ancient remains of ice and dust left over after the planets formed *in ancient times they believed a comet was a bad sign and that disease, wars and other disasters would follow *Ancient Britons believed they had a good reason to fear the comet that appeared in 1066 *in 1066 Britain was invaded by the French, the French killed the British ruler King Harold *People in ancient times believed that comets were “long-haired” stars How comets change when close to Sun *1st the Sun’s heat warms the outer surface of the comet and melts some of its ice *2nd the ice changes into gas and forms a cloud around the nucleus, at the same time dust that was frozen in the ice is released in the gas *3rd the cloud of gas and...
Words: 931 - Pages: 4
...Term Paper “Comet C/2006 M4 SWAN”. GEOL 208/2- “The Earth, Moon and Planets” Fall 2006 - Lec AA Xxxxxx Xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx ID# xxxxxxxx Due Date: December 5th, 2006 Page 1 Comets are beautiful. When in close proximity to heat, comet like objects become enveloped in gases that glow in light, they become even more magnificent when approaching close proximity to the sun. The tails of comets extend greater distances due to increased amount of sublimed gases as the intensity of light and heat of the sun increases. Right now and even as I attended a lecture only a few weeks ago given by Daniel Rosa on the subject of comets, comet C/2006 M4 SWAN is and was being hurled away from me and planet Earth never to return again.1 Many observers globally enjoyed the spectacle as SWAN approached closer and closer to the sun, however in our history we haven't always admired comets in such an amiable fashion. Many ancient culture viewed comets as bad omens. In reality a large comet impact on the earth can have devastating effects as demonstrated during the Tunguska event in 1908. Science has dispelled our mystical negative superstitions about comets and we have evidence to support that comet impacts may have helped mold earth into being a habitable environment for life2. In some respects our scientific observations and measurements have reduced the mystery and magic of comets to nothing more then over sized "dirty snow balls". We understand the anatomy of comets, we understand how they orbit...
Words: 1857 - Pages: 8
...1. Why has NASA sent recent orbiters to Mars (such as Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter) on trajectories that required them to skim through Mars's atmosphere before settling into their final orbits? | | It saves money because the spacecraft uses atmospheric drag to slow down rather than needing to carry enough fuel to slow by firing rocket engines. | | | Each spacecraft also carried a lander, and the lander could only be dropped to the Martian surface when the spacecraft passed through the atmosphere. | | | It allowed the spacecraft to collect samples of the atmospheric gas for return to Earth. | | | It allowed the orbiters to get higher resolution pictures of the surface as it came close when skimming through the atmosphere. | 2 points QUESTION 2 1. Why was it advantageous for the Voyager mission to consist of flybys rather than orbiters? | | It was easier for data to be radioed back to Earth with flybys than orbiters. | | | Each individual spacecraft was able to visit more than one planet. | | | Spacecraft making flybys can return to Earth more quickly than orbiters. | | | Flyby spacecraft can get closer to a planet than an orbiting spacecraft. | 2 points QUESTION 3 1. Which of the following statements about the recently-discovered object Eris is not true? | | It orbits the Sun in the same direction as the other planets. | | | It lies well beyond Pluto and Neptune. | | | It is thought to be the first example...
Words: 827 - Pages: 4
...Mars) before finally reaching the comet. On arrival at 67P Rosetta will enter orbit around the comet and stay with it as it journeys in towards the Sun. MILESTONES: To study the origin of comets, the relationship between cometary and interstellar material, and its implications with regard to the origin of the Solar System. The measurements to be made to achieve this are: Global characterisation of the nucleus, determination of dynamic properties, surface morphology and composition. Determination of the chemical, mineralogical and isotopic compositions of volatiles and refractories in a cometary nucleus. Determination of the physical properties and interrelation of volatiles and refractories in a cometary nucleus. Study of the development of cometary activity and the processes in the surface layer of the nucleus and the inner coma (dust/gas interaction); Global characterisation of asteroids, including determination of dynamic properties, surface morphology and composition. Comets are important to study -- because their ice probably contains the same molecules present at the start of the solar system -- and also difficult to land on, because of their speed. The comet that Philae landed on is traveling around the sun at about 84,000 miles per hour. Even though it's only about 300 million miles away, the probe traveled about 4 billion miles to reach it, slingshotting around the Earth three times to build up speed. As the comet approaches the sun (with Rosetta...
Words: 528 - Pages: 3
...At first glance Discover magazine appears to be a scientific magazine comparable to Popular Science or Wired. Discover magazine does have information pertaining to the scientific community, but it is more than just single subject topics like electronics or biology. Discover magazine entices and educates its readers on latest technologies and breakthroughs within the entire scientific community not just one aspect of it. The scientific community is broad term used to describe those that are interested in one of the hundreds of scientific fields such as astronomy, computers, or health care to name a few. The magazine is geared toward all those interested in the scientific community with articles on subjects such as astronomy, chemistry, biology, technology, medicine, and more. Discover magazine contains articles that explain how these new scientific breakthroughs pertain to one on a day to day basis and how they will impact the future of the world. In a single issue of Discover magazine you are likely to read about topics such as medicine, asteroids, global warming, and animals. They colorful colors and photographs on the cover and in the magazine would lead one to believe that Discover magazine is a typical grocery store check-out lane item, however upon closer inspection one would note that it contains articles written by those that have advance degrees in science and Nobel Prize winners. In the October 2015 issue of Discover magazine there is a lengthy article about...
Words: 1094 - Pages: 5
...body in orbit around the sun. The orbits of some asteroids take them across the paths of the planets. Asteroids are smaller than a planet but larger than a meteoroid, which is a small interplanetary object also in orbit around the Sun. If a portion of a meteoroid or other object survives the entry through the Earth’s atmosphere and reaches the Earth’s surface it is referred to as a meteorite. A meteor, also known as a shooting star, is a streak of light produced by a meteoroid that burns away in the Earth’s atmosphere. When their orbit brings them close to the sun, gigantic balls of ice and rock or comets, form a tail of dust and gas while being heated by the Sun’s rays. Scientists believe that the extinction of dinosaurs, nearly 66 million years ago, was the result of a large meteorite striking what today is Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. In 1908, a fragment of an asteroid or comet exploded in Earth’s atmosphere above Tunguska, Russia. The “Tunguska event”, the blast caused by the explosion, knocked down an estimated 80 million trees over 830 square miles. On February 15, 2013, just 3,000 miles west of Tunguska in western Siberia, a 10 ton meteor entered the Earth’s atmosphere. The meteor exploded with the force of an atomic bomb....
Words: 687 - Pages: 3
...all the asteroids is less than that of Earth's moon. But despite their size, asteroids can be dangerous. Many have hit Earth in the past, and more will crash into our planet in the future. That's one reason scientists study asteroids and are eager to learn more about their numbers, orbits and physical characteristics. Most asteroids lie in a vast ring between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. The main asteroid belt holds more than 200 asteroids larger than 60 miles long. Nearly all asteroids are irregularly shaped, although a few are nearly spherical. A comet is an icy body that releases gas or dust. They are often compared to dirty snowballs, though recent research has led some scientists to call them snowy dirtballs. Comets contain dust, ice, carbon dioxide, ammonia, methane and more. Astronomers think comets are leftovers from the gas, dust, ice and rocks that initially formed the solar system about 4.6 billion years ago. Comets orbit the sun but are believed to be located in an area called the Oort Cloud, far beyond the orbit of Pluto. Meteorites vary in size from a few millimetres across to several feet in diameter. Meteorites are rarely round in shape. They are typically irregular, with rounded edges. The surface of a freshly fallen meteorite will appear black and shiny due to the presence of a fusion crust, the result of frictional heating and abrasion of the outer surface of the rock as it passes through the Earth's atmosphere. Most meteorites are believed to originate in...
Words: 302 - Pages: 2
...Karina Almost 1,000 people were injured when a meteor shot across the sky and exploded over central Russia on Friday, sending fireballs crashing to Earth, shattering windows and damaging buildings. Definition : Small pieces of space debris — usually parts of comets or asteroids — that are on a collision course with the Earth are called meteoroids. They become meteors when they enter the Earth's atmosphere. Most meteors burn up in the atmosphere, but if they survive the frictional heating and strike the surface of the Earth they are called meteorites. The site of Friday's spectacular show is about 5,000 kilometres west of Tunguska, which in 1908 was the site of the largest recorded explosion of a space object plunging to Earth. That blast, attributed to a comet or asteroid fragment, is generally estimated to have been about 10 megatons; it levelled some 80 million trees. The meteor — estimated to be about 10 tons — entered the Earth's atmosphere at a hypersonic speed of at least 54,000 kph and shattered about 30-50 kilometres above the ground. Chelyabinsk city authorities urged people to stay indoors unless they needed to pick up their children from schools and kindergartens. They said what sounded like a blast had been heard at an altitude of 10,000 metres. Yana The explosions broke an estimated 100,000 square meters of glass. 985 people had asked for medical assistance. The Interfax news agency quoted that 43 people were hospitalized. A fireball blazed across the...
Words: 453 - Pages: 2
...GEO 1000, Natural Disasters Movie Worksheet: Deep Impact 1. Who discovers the comet? Do you think that is likely? A teenage amateur astronomer Leo Biederman discovers the comet. He discovers the unusual object between the Mizar and Alcor stars while at a party with his friends from the astronomy club. He tells his teacher, who in turn alerts Dr. Marcus Wolf, an astronomer, who realizes that it is a comet set to collide with Earth. It is unlikely that a comet so bright and a year from reaching Earth had not been discovered by any other astronomer. In addition, comets do not move very fast across the sky, so it would have taken a long time to get as bright as the Mizar. 2. How long does the government wait after the discovery of the comet to tell the public? Do you think this is an appropriate amount of time? The government waits for a year since discovery to alert the public. This is prompted by a resignation of the Secretary of Treasury, Alan Rittenhouse. Jenny Lerner probes the story and finds herself facing the FBI. She later learns that the resignation was due to an “Extinction Level Event” and President Tom Beck makes the announcement. The government holds discretion to disclosure for disasters, especially if it is extinction level events. They had given themselves enough time to attempt to mitigate the issue and once the resignation triggered public curiosity, it was prudent to let the public know. It should be noted that by this time, they also unveiled a...
Words: 495 - Pages: 2
...Abstract This paper entitled Stardust is about none other than the famous Stardust mission by NASA. This paper will go in depth about how the mission was conceived and who was the primary funder of the mission. After the introduction of the mission stardust we go in depth of how the spacecraft was designed. What material was used for the frame of the spacecraft and why that certain material was used instead of anything else. This paper will also go over how the spacecraft communicated back to earth when it was thousands of miles away. Another interesting thing that will be explained is how the spacecraft was powered. What was or were the technologies implemented on the spacecraft to make it active for so long. Like anything else that is unmanned and automated, there has to have been a computer on board and this paper will go through the details of what computer was on board and why that particular computer was chosen if possible. Since this was a spacecraft with a set trajectory, what else controlled it to make it stay in place? That’s when this paper talks about the attitude control and propulsion systems onboard the stardust spacecraft. The last thing that will talked about in the spacecraft design section of this paper is the scientific instruments the stardust spacecraft carried in order to fulfill its primary objective. Its primary objective was to do a fly by and collect samples from preset meteor targets. The next major body of this paper is the actual mission profile...
Words: 3288 - Pages: 14
...innocent than a last minute trip, on a privately-owned jet, to a privately-funded research facility, in northern Alaska to see the magnificent auroras? After Matt’s best friend and college roommate, Bartholomew Jacob Hunt, the third, convinced him that it was the chance of a lifetime, they would surely find out. During their flight to Alaska, the boys are notified that Halley’s Comet’s orbit has been altered by the sun’s photosphere and is headed straight for the research station’s space elevator. There is no time to bring in additional scientists, so Matt and Barty must be willing to help. Using a chemical rocket and magnetic sail, three of the scientists at the research center will enter space and attempt to change the orbit of Halley Comet, while Matt and Barty operate the command center with the help of the lead scientist. This is the day they single-handedly saved two planets and created a new habitable environment on Mercury’s surface. [Student’s Name] [Professor’s Name] [Class Number] [Today’s Date] The Day We Saved Two Planets 10:20am. “It’s 2068! It is a mistake to ignore an occurrence that only transpires once every 11 years. Do you know what an aurora is!? I’ll tell you what an aurora is. An aurora is a disturbance in the magnetosphere produced by solar winds (source). You see, the electrons… remember electrons, Matt? They are the charged particles we talked about in chemistry. Right. You see, the electrons collide with atoms in the Earth’s atmosphere. When...
Words: 3983 - Pages: 16
...Though there are thousands of observatories/telescopes all around the world and after several minutes of researching I have chosen but one, the NAOJ Hawaii Observatory. It is located in Mauna Kea, Hawaii. This particular observatory is home to the Subaru Telescope and is operated by the National Institutes of Natural Sciences. The Subaru Telescope is one of the world’s largest and most advanced telescopes. It is 22.2 meters tall, 27.2 meters wide and weighs 555 metric tons. The Subaru Telescope’s main focus is in optical and infrared imaging. The telescope has been used to find many galaxies and has captured images all across the universe. One such image captured was the moment when a probe from the NASA spacecraft Deep Impact crashed into Comet Tempel 1 in July 2005. The Subaru Telescope has made several great discoveries and because of its open use program, which allows astronomer from throughout the world have access to it. Using telescopes scientist are able to capture images from across the universe. One such images is of an asteroid that was slowly breaking down into several pieces as it neared the sun. In the image an asteroid is shown slowly breaking into pieces and drifting apart. Caught in March of 2014 this is the captured image of an asteroid being broken apart by the sunlight. Another image captured is of water vapor venting off Jovian Moon. Scientist believe that this could be evidence of a subsurface ocean on the moon. Many space missions have been carried out...
Words: 420 - Pages: 2
...things in our solar system would look most like such science fiction dangers? the rings of Saturn Suppose we discover a new comet on an orbit that brings it closer to the Sun than Mercury every 125 years. What can we conclude? It has been on its current orbit for only a very short time compared to the age of our solar system Which of the following objects are probably not located in the same region of the solar system in which they originally formed? oort cloud comets The discovery of Eris __________. was not surprising, because other Kuiper belt objects approaching the size of Pluto had already been discovered When we see a meteor shower, it means that _________ Earth is crossing the orbit of a comet When you see the bright flash of a meteor, what are you actually seeing? the glow from a pea-size particle and the surrounding air as the particle burns up in our atmosphere Suppose you find a meteorite made almost entirely of metal. According to current science, which of the following statements must be true? Your meteorite is a fragment from the core of a large asteroid that shattered in a collision Why didn't a planet form where the asteroid belt is now located? Gravitational tugs from Jupiter prevented material from collecting together to form a planet. Suppose there were no solar wind. How would the appearance of a comet in our inner solar system be different? it would have only one tail instead of two Which of the following is not a piece of...
Words: 454 - Pages: 2
...scientific name is "meteors". Let's learn some more about falling stars. Space looks empty, but there's all kind of stuff out there: gas, dust and tiny rock and ice fragments. The tiny pieces of rock or ice are known as meteoroids. They could have been left over from the formation of the Solar System 4.6 billion years ago. Or maybe they were part of the tail of a comet that was making a near pass to the Sun. Rocks and asteroids can collide with one another in space and generate meteoroid debris. Who knows how long the tiny object was orbiting the Sun until its path finally crossed the Earth. When a meteoroid strikes the Earth's atmosphere, it burns up leaving a tiny trail in the sky. This trail is the falling star, or meteor. The size of the trail depends on the speed of the object, the angle it struck the atmosphere at, and the amount of mass that it has. The largest objects can leave a trail across the sky that lasts for a few seconds. Although you can see falling stars any night of the year, there are certain times when they're more frequent. These are the times when the Earth orbit takes us through the tail of an ancient comet. We'll pass through the tail fragments at the same time every year, so a meteor shower is predictable. Some famous meteor showers are the Perseids in August, and the Leonids in November. So remember, when you're looking for falling stars, you're not seeing stars at all, but meteors; tiny chunks of rock and ice impacting the Earth's atmosphere and burning...
Words: 318 - Pages: 2
...Hiring a financial manager was a major step for Comet Skateboards. Identify some of the factors the manager should consider when creating a plan for risk-return trade-off? Factors that the manager of Comet Skateboards should consider for risk-return trade-off, include general costs, rent, hiring effective people to handle financials/hiring a financial manager, influences on cash flow, connections within the market, quality, etc. What might be some: short term funding options for Comet and some long-term options? Which would be best for the company, and why? Some short term funding options for Comet include donations, fundraisers, and other local events to increase profits. Long term options could include receiving funds from financial institutions,...
Words: 327 - Pages: 2
