Deep Impact comet strike. Explosion on the surface of the nucleus (grey) of the comet 9P/Tempel 1,16 seconds after the Deep Impact impactor struck it. The Deep Impact spacecraft launched a 360-kilogram impactor at the comet,and it successfully struck it at over ten kilometres per second on 4th July 2005. The impact caused the ejection of a large amount of interior material. The mission was launched on 12 January 2005. It was designed to study the composition of a comet,as comets are relics from the formation of the solar system. As such,they can provide much information about its history and formation. The image was captured by the Deep Impact spacecraft | |
Licence : | Droits gérés |
Crédit: | Science Photo Library / UMD / NASA / JPL |
Taille de l’image : | 2404 px × 2621 px |
Model Release : | Non requis |
Property Release : | Non requis |
Restrictions : | - |