Stardust snaps close-ups of a second-hand comet!

Bad Astronomy
By Phil Plait
Feb 16, 2011 1:33 AMNov 20, 2019 2:01 AM

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A philosopher once asked, "Are we human because we gaze at the stars, or do we gaze at them because we are human?" Pointless, really... "Do the stars gaze back?" Now that's a question. -Narrator, "Stardust"

Late last night, the NASA mission Stardust flew within 178 km (110 miles) of the nucleus of the comet Tempel 1, seeing it up close for the first time since July 2005! Here's one of the better images from closest approach:

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