Comet 'joke' the sun

A comet flies through the atmosphere of the sun today and may be burned by that "cheeky" glide.

Space reported Swan comet stars plunge into the sun atmosphere on the evening of March 14 in the US time (corresponding to the morning and noon on March 15, Vietnam time).

Comet Swan

This event happened only three months after a comet named Lovejoy rushed into the sun. Lovejoy shocked the astronomers because it appeared from the back of the sun on December 15, 2011 and was not completely burned after rushing through the sun's upper region. The terrible temperature emanating from the sun only lost Lovejoy's tail.

A team of comet hunters discovered Swan when analyzing images sent by the US and European Solar and Heliospheric Observatory spacecraft. Like Lovejoy, the Swan has an orbit near the sun. It may have been the remains of a giant comet that had broken into pieces several centuries ago.

Astronomers predict that the Swan will be completely burned after crossing the solar atmosphere, a completely different outcome from Lovejoy.

"I guess the Swan could not survive after being exposed to the solar atmosphere," said Karl Battams, an astronomer from the US Naval Research Center.