Rosetta detects molecular nitrogen at comet

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Rosetta makes first detection of molecular nitrogen at a comet

19 March 2015 ESA’s Rosetta spacecraft has made the first measurement of molecular nitrogen at a comet, providing clues about the temperature environment in which Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko formed.

Rosetta arrived last August, and has since been collecting extensive data on the comet and its environment with its suite of 11 science instruments.

The in situ detection of molecular nitrogen has long been sought at a comet. Nitrogen had only previously been detected bound up in other compounds, including hydrogen cyanide and ammonia, for example.

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