JPL
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
JPL Logo
JPL Logo
Image

Composite of Comet Borrelly's Nucleus, Jets, Coma

Oct. 8, 2002
A composite of images from NASA's Deep Space 1 spacecraft shows features of comet Borrelly's nucleus, dust jets escaping the nucleus and the cloud-like 'coma' of dust and gases surrounding the nucleus.

A composite of images from NASA's Deep Space 1 spacecraft shows features of comet Borrelly's nucleus, dust jets escaping the nucleus and the cloud-like "coma" of dust and gases surrounding the nucleus. False color is used to reveal details of the jets and coma.

The images were taken when Deep Space 1 was about 4,800 kilometers (3,000 miles) from Borrelly during a Sept. 22, 2001, flyby. Borrelly's nucleus is about 8 kilometers (5 miles) from end to end, so the field of view is about 40 kilometers (25 miles) across.

The Sun shines from the bottom of the image. The main dust jet, seen extending toward the bottom left, heads away from the comet in a direction that is about 30 degrees off the direction straight toward the Sun from the comet.

The colors show about three orders of magnitude in the brightness of the dust jets and coma. Red indicates about one-tenth the brightness as the brightness of the nucleus, blue one-one-hundredth, purple one-one-thousandth. The red bumps near the nucleus indicate where the jet resolves into three distinct, narrow jets, which likely come from discrete source points on the surface.

Deep Space 1 completed its primary mission testing ion propulsion and 11 other advanced, high-risk technologies in September 1999. NASA extended the mission, taking advantage of the ion propulsion and other systems to undertake this encounter with the comet. More information can be found on the Deep Space 1 home page.

Deep Space 1 was launched Oct. 24, 1998, as part of NASA's New Millennium Program, which is managed by JPL for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The California Institute of Technology manages JPL for NASA.

Download JPG
Download TIFF
Mission
Target
  • Borrelly
Spacecraft
  • Deep Space 1
Instrument
  • Miniature Integrated Camera Spectrometer
Credit
NASA/JPL

Keep Exploring

Spare Ion Engine Being Checked

Deep Space 1 Using its Ion Engine (Artist's Concept)

Artist's Concept of Deep Space 1 Encounter with Comet Borrelly

Artist's Concept of Deep Space 1

Deep Space 1's Ion Engine

Deep Space 1's Ion Engine

Deep Space 1's Ion Engine

Highest Resolution Comet Picture Ever Reveals Rugged Terrain - Deep Space 1

Comet Borrelly Nucleus Found to the Side

Comet Borrelly's Varied Landscape

About JPL
Who We Are
Executive Council
Directors
Careers
Internships
The JPL Story
JPL Achievements
Documentary Series
Annual Reports
Missions
Current
Past
Future
All
News
All
Earth
Solar System
Stars and Galaxies
Subscribe to JPL News
Galleries
Images
Videos
Audio
Podcasts
Apps
Visions of the Future
Slice of History
Robotics at JPL
Events
Lecture Series
Team Competitions
Speakers Bureau
Calendar
Visit
Public Tours
Virtual Tour
Directions and Maps
Topics
JPL Life
Solar System
Mars
Earth
Climate Change
Exoplanets
Stars and Galaxies
Robotics
More
Asteroid Watch
NASA's Eyes Visualizations
Universe - Internal Newsletter
Social Media
Get the Latest from JPL
Follow Us

JPL is a federally funded research and development center managed for NASA by Caltech.

More from JPL
Careers Education Science & Technology Acquisitions JPL Store
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
Acquisitions
JPL Store
Related NASA Sites
Basics of Spaceflight
Climate Kids
Earth / Global Climate Change
Exoplanet Exploration
Mars Exploration
Solar System Exploration
Space Place
NASA's Eyes Visualization Project
Voyager Interstellar Mission
NASA
Caltech
Privacy
Image Policy
FAQ
Feedback
Site Managers: Veronica McGregor, Randal Jackson
Site Editors: Tony Greicius, Naomi Hartono
CL#: 21-0018