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Comet Siding Spring (March 11, 2014)
About the Object
- DistanceDistanceThe physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.At the time of the Hubble observation on March 11, 2014, the comet was 3.28 astronomical units (305 million miles) from the Sun. The comet was 3.79 astronomical units (353 million miles) from Earth.
About the Data
- Data DescriptionData DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.The image was created from Hubble data from proposal 13610: J.-Y. Li (Planetary Science Institute), M. Kelley (University of Maryland), N. Samarasinha (Planetary Science Institute), C. Lisse (JHU/APL), T. Farnham and M. A'Hearn (University of Maryland), W. Delamere (Delamere Support Services), and M. Mutchler (STScI). - InstrumentInstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.HST>WFC3/UVIS
- Exposure DatesExposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.March 11, 2014
- FiltersFiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.F606W (V)
- Object NameObject NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.C/2013 A1 Siding Spring
- Object DescriptionObject DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.Comet
- Release DateMarch 27, 2014
- Science ReleaseHubble Sees Mars-Bound Comet Sprout Multiple Jets
- Credit
Compass and Scale
Compass and ScaleAn astronomical image with a scale that shows how large an object is on the sky, a compass that shows how the object is oriented on the sky, and the filters with which the image was made.
Related Images & Videos
Hubble Sees Mars-Bound Comet Sprout Multiple Jets
[Left] This is a Hubble Space Telescope picture of comet C/2013 A1 Siding Spring as observed on March 11, 2014. At that time the comet was 353 million miles from Earth. The solid icy nucleus is too small to be resolved by Hubble, but it lies at the center of a dust cloud, called...
Hubble Tracks Inbound Comet
This is a series of Hubble Space Telescope pictures of comet C/2013 A1 Siding Spring as observed on Oct. 29, 2013; Jan. 21, 2014; and March 11, 2014. The distances from Earth were, respectively, 376 million miles, 343 million miles, and 353 million miles. The solid icy nucleus...
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Details
Last Updated
Mar 28, 2025
Contact
Media
Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov
