Abstract
The dust impact mass analyser (PUMA) carried by the spacecraft Vega 1 and Vega 2 has provided the first direct measurements of the physical and chemical properties of cometary dust. Particles of mass <10−14 g are much more abundant than was predicted by models1. Most of the particles are rich in light elements such as H, C, N and O, lending support to models that describe cometary material as consisting of radiation-processed ices. Three examples of mass spectra for typical particle compositions are shown.
Enjoying our latest content?
Log in or create an account to continue
- Access the most recent journalism from Nature's award-winning team
- Explore the latest features & opinion covering groundbreaking research
or
References
Divine, N. Eur. Space Ag. spec. Publ. 174, 25–30 (1981).
Mamyrin, B. A., Karatyev, V. I., Shmikk, D. V. & Zagulin, V. A. Zh. éksp. teor. Fiz. 64, 82 (1973).
Sagdeev, R. Z. et al. Venus-Halley Mission (Louis-Jean, Gap, 1985).
Kissel, J. Eur. Space Ag. spec. Publ. 1077, 67–68 (1986).
Brownlee, D. E. A. Rev. Earth Planet. Sci. 13, 147–173 (1985).
Drapatz, S. & Lichel, K. W. Z. Naturf. 29A, 870 (1974).
Krueger, F. R. Z. Naturf. 38A, 385 (1983).
Brown, W. L., Lamerotti, L. J. & Johnson, R. E. Science 218, 528 (1982).
Greenberg, J. M. in Comets (ed. Wilkening, L. L.) 131–163 (University of Arizona Press, Tucson, 1982).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kissel, J., Sagdeev, R., Bertaux, J. et al. Composition of comet Halley dust particles from Vega observations. Nature 321 (Suppl 6067), 280–282 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1038/321280a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/321280a0
This article is cited by
-
Cometary Nuclei—From Giotto to Rosetta
Space Science Reviews (2020)
-
On the Origin and Evolution of the Material in 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
Space Science Reviews (2020)
-
Oxygen Isotopes and Sampling of the Solar System
Space Science Reviews (2020)
-
The Dawn of Dust Astronomy
Space Science Reviews (2019)
-
Cometary Dust
Space Science Reviews (2018)
