PIA02190: Piece of a Comet


Piece of a Comet

Caption:

This image shows a comet particle collected by the Stardust spacecraft. The particle is made up of the silicate mineral forsterite, also known as peridot in its gem form. It is surrounded by a thin rim of melted aerogel, the substance used to collect the comet dust samples. The particle is about 2 micrometers across.

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 Comet, Dust, Grayscale
Acquisition Date
Release Date 2006-02-21
Date in Caption
Image Credit NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Washington
Source photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA02190
Identifier PIA02190