Don Brownlee
Don Brownlee
brought close collected comet earth excellent fairly marks passed provided recent samples spacecraft time
In recent decades, spacecraft have passed fairly close to comets and provided us with excellent data. Stardust, however, marks the first time that we have ever collected samples from a comet and brought them back to Earth for study.
scientific
It's a crystalline silicate grain. This is great; we've already got scientific results.
biggest finger impacts
The biggest impacts were big enough to put your little finger in.
cent comet exactly organic per
About 10 per cent of this comet is made of organic materials. We don't know exactly what they all are but it is very exciting.
aided blown entire eye high particle
You can't see them with the unaided eye (but) with the aided eye (through a microscope) you can see everything. A little particle blown up to high magnification is like working on an entire state! It's amazing.
believe best beyond bodies collecting comet formed major mission planets preserved reason samples solar system
The fundamental reason for this mission is that we are collecting what we believe are the best preserved samples of the formation of our solar system and they are preserved because they formed these comet bodies beyond the major planets out beyond Neptune.
return risk simplest stardust
The capsule's return is probably the simplest of all the things Stardust has done and has the least risk. Nonetheless, it has to work.
atoms attachment blocks bodies building carbon fact forth literally planetary rings solar stardust strong system
These are literally the building blocks of our planetary system. Personally, I feel a strong attachment to this thing and we should all feel a strong attachment to it because the fact is all the atoms in our bodies -- the carbon atoms and the oxygen, nitrogen, potassium and calcium and so forth -- all those atoms were in stardust rings ... before the solar system formed.
atoms blocks bodies building carbon comet coming forth literally planetary solar stardust system
These are literally the building blocks of our planetary system. All of the atoms in our bodies - the carbon atoms, the oxygen, the nitrogen, potassium, calcium and so forth - all of those atoms were in stardust grains like those coming out of the comet now before the solar system formed.
blocks building literally planetary
These are literally the building blocks of our planetary system.
blocks bringing building collecting edge history original planets solar
This is a history project. We are going to the edge of the solar system, collecting the original building blocks of the planets and bringing them back to our labs.
imaging
The imaging was a bonus, but boy, what a bonus.
built engineers seemed
All the engineers who built it seemed to be happy. It's very strong.
exciting mystery stay
It's a very exciting mystery story. So stay tuned.