Tag: Comet Interceptor
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ESA Brings Forward Comet Interceptor Mission Aimed at Pristine Solar System Visitor
The European Space Agency is accelerating preparations for its Comet Interceptor mission, one of its most ambitious scientific ventures, designed to intercept and study a pristine comet — or potentially an interstellar object — entering the inner solar system for the first time. According to a report by SpaceNews, the mission’s launch timetable has been…
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We’re about to find many more interstellar interlopers—here’s how to visit one
A few days ago, an inscrutable interstellar interloper made its closest approach to Mars, where a fleet of international spacecraft seek to unravel the red planet’s ancient mysteries. Several of the probes encircling Mars took a break from their usual activities and turned their cameras toward space to catch a glimpse of an object named…
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European space mission to get close-up view of new comet
This view of Comet C/2012 S1, or ISON, was captured in November 2013 by the TRAPPIST–South telescope at the European Southern Observatory’s La Silla facility in Chile. Comet ISON was a dynamically new comet that likely began its journey to the inner solar system from the Oort Cloud, spherical shell of icy objects located between…