"A Comet's Brush With Mars"
By: Agence France-Presse
New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/19/science/a-comets-brush-with-mars.html?ref=science
In Washington, a comet that was about the size of a mini mountain flew past the planet Mars. This was a once in a million year encounter and was an astonishment to space enthusiasts. This comet was known as the Siding Spring and it made its encounter with Mars at 2:27 pm at 126,000 miles per hour. This comet was 87,000 miles from Mars which is less than half the distance between Earth and our moon. Before the comet actually passed, it was seen in space racing towards Mars. Scientists say that this comets encounter with Mars offers a chance to be able to study on Mars's atmosphere. The sensing team leader from NASA's Maven Mission to Mars, Nick Schneider said“What could be more exciting than to have a whopper of an external influence like a comet, just so we can see how atmospheres do respond?It’s a great learning opportunity" (France-Presse,1). This comet is believed to be originated a billion years ago from the Oort Cloud. Oort Cloud is a distant region of space that does not have to do with our solar system. Siding Spring is a ball of ice, dirt and pebbles. As this comet went through space, it created a meteor shower, which had the scientists worrying, because of their valuable space craft.“All it takes is a little tiny grain of sand traveling at that speed and you’ve got damage to solar arrays, or your propulsion line or critical wires,” Dr. Schneider said. This comet has traveled one million years and will not appear again for another one million years.
How exciting it is to encounter a comet that comes once in a million years during your lifetime! I can imagine the excitement of space enthusiasts. What I really liked about your post is that you explained unclear terms for the audience. This allowed the audience to fully understand what you are telling them, and showed your knowledge on the topic. Awesome job Brittany!
ReplyDeleteYay Brittany we both did our news blogs on the same article! Even though I already knew the story I enjoyed reading your blog because your words were easily grabbed my attention and I just did not want to stop reading. You have no idea how happy I am that Mars is safe. Thank you for the well written blog.
ReplyDeleteWow! One in a million years? How lucky are we to be living in that one from a million of years. Anyways, Brittany, you clearly understood the topic fantastically and interpreted in a perfect way. Great topic, fine writing, and thank you for teaching us about this amazing story. Lovely work!
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