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PIA05578: Comet Wild 2 - Jet Release
This composite image was taken by the navigation camera during the close approach phase of Stardust's Jan 2, 2004 flyby of comet Wild 2. Several large depressed regions can be seen. Comet Wild 2 is about five kilometers (3.1 miles) in diameter.
 Target Name:  Wild 2
 Is a satellite of:  Sol (our sun)
 Mission:  Stardust 
 Spacecraft:  Stardust
 Instrument:  Stardust Navigation Camera 
 Product Size:  2400 x 2400 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  JPL 
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA05578.tif (11.5 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA05578.jpg (320.8 kB)  

Click on the image above to download a moderately sized image in JPEG format (possibly reduced in size from original)

Original Caption Released with Image:

This composite image was taken by the navigation camera during the close approach phase of Stardust's Jan 2, 2004 flyby of comet Wild 2. Several large depressed regions can be seen. Comet Wild 2 is about five kilometers (3.1 miles) in diameter. To create this image, a short exposure image showing tremendous surface detail was overlain on a long exposure image taken just 10 seconds later showing jets. Together, the images show an intensely active surface, jetting dust and gas streams into space and leaving a trail millions of kilometers long.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL-Caltech

Image Addition Date:
2004-03-18