We get another close look at a comet!

Also Happy Vicky's Birthday to everybody! Also Happy whatever other holiday you may be celebrating on Feb 14th... :)

Anyway, back to the subject line - Stardust NExT is bearing down on Tempel 1 to see what the place looks like this year...

NASA Spacecraft Hours From Comet Encounter
JPL Press Release

February 14, 2011 - PASADENA, Calif. -- As of today, Feb. 14, at 9:21 a.m. PST (12:21 p.m. EST), NASA's Stardust-NExT mission spacecraft is within a quarter-million miles (402,336 kilometers) of its quarry, comet Tempel 1, which it will fly by tonight. The spacecraft is cutting the distance with the comet at a rate of about 10.9 kilometers per second (6.77 miles per second or 24,000 mph).

The flyby of Tempel 1 will give scientists an opportunity to look for changes on the comet's surface since it was visited by NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft in July 2005. Since then, Tempel 1 has completed one orbit of the sun, and scientists are looking forward to discovering any differences in the comet.

The closest approach is expected tonight at approximately 8:40 p.m. PST (11:40 p.m. EST).
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