Comet Hartley 2 nucleus seen by Deep impact spacecraft
author: Nasa/JPL/UMD/Novapix
reference: a-com09-00005
Image Size 300 DPI: 25 * 19 cm
The image, one of the closest taken of comet Hartley 2 by NASA's EPOXI mission, shows many features across the comet's surface. There are two obvious regions of jet activity associated with rough terrain. The smooth surface in the middle is lower than the rest of the comet and may accumulate fine-grain dust. The image was taken by EPOXI's Medium-Resolution Instrument on Nov. 4, 2010. The sun is to the right.
The comet's nucleus, or main body, is approximately 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) long and 0.4 kilometers (0.25 miles) at the "neck," or most narrow portion. Jets can be seen streaming out of the nucleus.