Rosetta spacecraft detects unexpected ultraviolet aurora at a comet

Data from Southwest Research Institute-led instruments aboard ESA's Rosetta spacecraft have helped reveal auroral emissions in the far ultraviolet around a comet for the first time.

At Earth, auroras are formed when charged particles from the Sun follow our planet's magnetic field lines to the north and south poles. There, solar particles strike atoms and molecules in Earth's atmosphere, creating shimmering curtains of colorful light in high-latitude skies.

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Credit: ESA/Rosetta/NAVCAM

Similar phenomena have been seen at various planets and moons in our solar system and even around a distant star.

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Credit: ESA/Rosetta/NAVCAM

Gas and dust rise from Chury's surface as the comet approaches the point of its orbit closest to the Sun.

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In August 2014, the ESAs Rosetta probe picked up a strange ticking sound coming from Comet67P.

These sound waves are moving through the comet’s magnetic field.