PIA20542: Comet Frozen In Time by NASA Radar


Comet Frozen In Time by NASA Radar

Caption:

Click here for the animation

These radar images of comet P/2016 BA14 were taken on March 23, 2016, by scientists using an antenna of NASA's Deep Space Network at Goldstone, California. At the time, the comet was about 2.2 million miles (3.6 million kilometers) from Earth.

Radar images and data from the flyby indicated that the comet is about 3,000 feet (1 kilometer) in diameter.

Background Info:

More information from NASA's Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) on Mauna Kea, Hawaii observations of comet P/2016 BA14 is available at http://www.psi.edu/news/darkcomet2 .More information about the Deep Space Network is at http://deepspace.jpl.nasa.gov/dsn .

Cataloging Keywords:

Name Value Additional Values
Target P/2016 BA14 (Pan-STARRS)
System Periodic Comets
Target Type Comet
Mission Deep Space Network (DSN)
Instrument Host Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex (GDSCC)
Host Type Ground-Based Observatory
Instrument Goldstone Solar System Radar
Detector
Extra Keywords Grayscale, Infrared, Movie, Radar, Radio
Acquisition Date
Release Date 2016-03-24
Date in Caption 2016-03-23
Image Credit NASA/JPL-Caltech/GSSR
Source photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20542
Identifier PIA20542