Comets

Comets
Asteroids
The Solar System
These celestial objects look like asteroids but act like comets now come in two flavors. The first dark comet — a celestial object that looks like an asteroid but moves through space like a comet — was reported less than two years ago. Soon after, another six were found. In a new paper, researchers announce […]
Posted December 9, 2024
Comets
Goddard Space Flight Center
Planetary Science
Planetary Science Division
Rosetta
Science Mission Directorate
The Solar System
Scientists find that cometary dust affects interpretation of spacecraft measurements, reopening the case for comets as potential sources of water for early Earth. 
Posted December 3, 2024
Comets
Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope
Gamma-Ray Bursts
Goddard Space Flight Center
Heliophysics
Heliophysics Division
ICON (Ionospheric Connection Explorer)
Parker Solar Probe (PSP)
SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory)
Stars
STEREO (Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory)
The Sun
Uncategorized
Venus
Volcanoes
Wind Mission
With NASA’s fleet of heliophysics spacecraft, scientists monitor our Sun and investigate its influences throughout the solar system. However, the fleet’s constant watch and often-unique perspectives sometimes create opportunities to make discoveries that no one expected, helping us to solve mysteries about of the solar system and beyond.
Posted November 20, 2024
Comets
Night Sky Network
by Kat Troche of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific If you spotted comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) in person, or seen photos online this October, you might have been inspired to learn more about these visitors from the outer Solar System. Get ready for the next comet and find out how comets are connected to […]
Posted November 1, 2024
Comets
Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) passes over NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans in this Oct. 13, 2024, image. This comet comes from the Oort Cloud, far beyond Pluto and the most distant edges of the Kuiper Belt. Though Comet C/2023 A3 will be visible through early November, the best time to observe is between […]
Posted October 18, 2024
NEO Surveyor (Near-Earth Object Surveyor Space Telescope)
Comets
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA)
Planetary Defense
Planetary Defense Coordination Office
The mirrors for NASA’s Near-Earth Object Surveyor space telescope are being installed and aligned, and work on other spacecraft components is accelerating. NASA’s new asteroid-hunting spacecraft is taking shape at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.
Posted August 28, 2024
NEOWISE
Comets
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA)
NEO Surveyor (Near-Earth Object Surveyor Space Telescope)
Planetary Defense
Planetary Defense Coordination Office
WISE (Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer)
NASA’s near-Earth-object-hunting mission NEOWISE is nearing its conclusion. But its work will carry on with NASA’s next-generation infrared mission: NEO Surveyor. After more than 14 successful years in space, NASA’s NEOWISE (Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer) mission will end on July 31.
Posted July 2, 2024
NEOWISE
Comets
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA)
NEO Surveyor (Near-Earth Object Surveyor Space Telescope)
Planetary Defense
Planetary Defense Coordination Office
As the infrared space telescope continues its long-duration survey of the universe, it is creating a unique resource for future astronomers to make new discoveries.
Posted April 4, 2024
Citizen Science
Comets
Heliophysics
Skywatching
SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory)
The Solar System
The Sun
On March 25, 2024, a citizen scientist in the Czech Republic spotted a comet in an image from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft, which has now been confirmed to be the 5,000th comet discovered using SOHO data. SOHO has achieved this milestone over 28 years in space, even though it was never designed […]
Posted March 27, 2024
NEOWISE
Comets
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA)
NEO Surveyor (Near-Earth Object Surveyor Space Telescope)
Planetary Defense
Planetary Defense Coordination Office
WISE (Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer)
The asteroid and comet-hunting infrared space telescope has gathered an impressive haul of observations, but it’s now at the mercy of the Sun, which is accelerating its demise. NASA’s NEOWISE has had a busy decade. Since its reactivated mission began on Dec.
Posted December 13, 2023
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