Two comets will be swinging around the sun in 2013, allowing for rare naked-eye appearances by the elusive balls of rock and ice. But 2014 and 2015 will be the real exciting years for space enthusiasts as the Rosetta spacecraft is set to land a probe on a comet for the first ever up-close inspection.
U-M Professor Mike Combi helped develop two devices on the spacecraft that will analyze the composition of these ancient “dirty snowballs”. Researchers hope that the contents of the comet will give hints about the origin of the solar system more than 4.5 billion years ago.
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Filed Under: Aerospace + defense