La cometa "Chury" ha avuto nella notte tra mercoledì e giovedì un "appuntamento" con il Sole, passando nel punto della sua orbita più vicino all’astro (186 milioni di chilometri). Succede ogni 6 anni e mezzo ma questa volta c’erano anche "un terzo e un quarto incomodo": la sonda Rosetta e il robot Philae.
"Questo passaggio riveste una grande importanza simbolica", ha dichiarato Nicolas Altobelli, planetologo dell’Agenzia spaziale europea (ESA).
Con l’avvicinarsi alla nostra stella, l’attività della la cometa (costituita di ghiaccio, minerali e particelle organiche) è cresciuta fortemente. Dal suo nucleo sono fuoriusciti getti di gas e polveri sempre più intensi, osservati prontamente da Rosetta. Il momento più intenso di questo fenomeno verrà probabilmente raggiunto tra qualche settimana, spiega Altobelli.
Insomma, le avventure di Rosetta continueranno. Almeno fino al settembre del 2016 quando si prevede di far atterrare, con la massima grazia possibile, la sonda sulla cometa.
afp/ats/ZZ
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