Contrary to popular belief, there are many, many comets in the sky at any given time. The reason we don't see them? Most are too dim to be seen with the eye, others are up during the day, and yet more are very close to the Sun. It was a member of this last variety that was caught by the SOHO satellite diving to its doom on the Sun.
It was yesterday that SOHO, in its daily monitoring of the Sun, got to witness the spectacle that was the comet's suicide dive. As the comet got closer and closer to the Sn, it is interesting to note how it shrank into nothing, finally disappearing just above the Sun's surface itself.
Want to see the comet's death dive? Just go to Spaceweather.com and watch!
For anyone wanting to observe the Sun, just find a clear sky clock and see if it will be clear near you. The good news: it only takes a few minutes of clear to observe the Sun, just don't forget to use a safe solar filter!
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