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10/15/2014 16:15

Swedish instrument will make measurements when a comet passes Mars

Rick McGregor Informationsavdelningen / Communications Department
Schwedischer Forschungsrat - The Swedish Research Council

    On Sunday 19 October at 20:29 CET a comet will pass close to the planet Mars. At the same time the Swedish instrument ASPERA-3 is on board the European satellite Mars Express orbiting Mars and ready to make measurements.
    "Noone has before made measurements when a comet passes so close by a planet", says Associate Professor Mats Holmström at the Swedish Institute of Space Physics in Kiruna, Sweden.

    The comet Siding Spring will pass by Mars at a distance of only 140 000 km, about a third of the distance from the Earth to the Moon, by way of comparison. The outer parts of the comet's thin atmosphere will collide at high speed (56 km/sec) with the atmosphere of Mars.

    "We expect that gas and dust from the comet will impact on the Martian atmosphere, which will be temporarily heated and will expand", says Mats Holmström. "We should be able to see that with our instrument".

    Image: Comet Siding Spring and Mars (Artist's impression: NASA)

    The Swedish Institute of Space Physics (IRF) has Principal Investigator responsibility for the satellite instrument ASPERA-3 which is an international collaboration with participants from some 15 research groups from about 10 countries. ASPERA-3 on board the measures how charged particles from the sun, the so-called solar wind, influences the atmosphere of Mars. Mars Express was lauched by the European Space Agency (ESA) and has been orbiting Mars since 2003.

    More information:

    Assoc. Prof Mats Holmström, scientist, IRF, tel. +46-980-79186, +46-70-211 1138, mats.holmstrom*irf.se

    Rick McGregor, information office, IRF, tel. +46-980-79178, +46-70-276 6020, rick.mcgregor*irf.se


    More information:

    http://www.irf.se/?dbfile=Mars%20Express%20and%20ASPERA-3&dbsec=Administrati... Instrument ASPERA-3 and satellite Mars Express
    http://blogs.esa.int/mex/category/comet-siding-spring/ Pages on Comet Siding Spring: ESA
    http://mars.nasa.gov/comets/sidingspring/%20%20%20%20 Pages on Comet Siding Spring NASA


    Images

    Comet Siding Spring and Mars
    Comet Siding Spring and Mars
    Artist's impression: NASA
    None


    Criteria of this press release:
    Journalists, all interested persons
    Physics / astronomy
    transregional, national
    Research projects, Research results
    English


     

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