The solar system's second most active body is a comet
In short: Comet 29P behaves with such unpredictable volatility that it has sparked an international observation campaign. This video explores the mystery of its violent outbursts and the new clues provided by the James Webb Telescope.
Located between Jupiter and Neptune, Comet 29P is a massive Centaur measuring more than 37 miles (60 kilometers) across—comparable in size to the famous comet Hale-Bopp. It is known for extreme cryovolcanic outbursts that can cause it to flare up to 300 times brighter in just a few hours.
While its eruptions make it the second most active body in our solar system after Jupiter's moon Io, the specific trigger for this chaos remained a mystery until recently. The video investigates how new data from the James Webb Telescope is helping scientists understand the secret mechanisms powering these random explosions.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Scientists Have Never Seen a Comet Behave Like This Before
- Also: This mysterious comet
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