PIA02189: Slice of Comet Dust


Slice of Comet Dust

Caption:

This image illustrates one of several ways scientists have begun extracting comet particles from the Stardust spacecraft's collector. First, a particle and its track are cut out of the collector material, called aerogel, in a wedge-shaped slice called a keystone. A specialized silicon pickle fork is then used to remove the keystone from the remaining aerogel for further analysis.

Cataloging Keywords:

Name Value Additional Values
Target 81P/Wild
System Periodic Comets
Target Type Comet
Mission Stardust
Instrument Host Stardust
Host Type Sample Return
Instrument
Detector
Extra Keywords Color, Comet, Dust
Acquisition Date
Release Date 2006-02-21
Date in Caption
Image Credit NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of California, Berkeley
Source photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA02189
Identifier PIA02189