In our own solar system, asteroids have
collided with Earth, the moon and other planets . Science operations are
conducted at the Spitzer Science Center, at Caltech.

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One
possibility is a second wave of planets formed long after the death of the
star, leaving a dusty construction zone . They are littered
with the rocky scraps of failed planets, which occasionally crash into each
other , kicking up plumes of dust.
If confirmed, the new asteroid belt would be the first detected around a
star about the same age and size as our sun. The star, called HD69830, is
located 41 light-years away from Earth. The mission, which will
detect planets as small as a few Earth masses, is scheduled to launch in 2011.

transient construct

"The size of these grains tells us they are probably from comets and not other
planetary bodies.
Though the dust seen by Spitzer around the white dwarf is most likely the
remains of such a torn-up comet, there may be other explanations. JPL is a
division of Caltech .

variable supernovae

The findings were published in the
December 20, 2005, issue of the Astrophysical Journal. This hypothesis came about when the astronomers discovered the dust
around the star consists of small silicate crystals like those found in comet
Hale-Bopp.

asteroids mbcaa

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
Beichman and colleagues used Spitzer's infrared spectrograph to observe 85
sun-like stars.

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Charles Beichman, California Institute of Technology (Caltech),
Pasadena, Calif. George
Rieke, University of Arizona, Tucson, co-author of the paper.

relying observatory

NASA's Spitzer Finds Possible Comet Dust Around Dead Star

Astronomers believe white dwarfs are shrunken skeletons of stars that were
once similar to Earth's sun. Spitzer, with its powerful
infrared spectrometer, was able to break this light apart revealing its
molecular makeup.spitzer. Beichman is lead author of a paper that will appear in the
Astrophysical Journal. Our asteroid belt lies
between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, whereas this one is located inside an
orbit equivalent to that of Venus.

photometry tass

Only when something disturbs
their orbits, such as another comet or an outer planet, do they begin periodic
journeys into the sun's warmer neighborhood.gov

observers tass

Only distant outer planets and an orbiting
icy outpost of comets would have survived.
"The dust seen by Spitzer around G29-38 was probably generated relatively
recently when one such outlying comet may have been knocked into the inner
region of the system and ripped into dust shreds by the tidal forces of the
star," said astronomer William Reach of the Spitzer Science Center at the
California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, Calif.
Prior to the Spitzer findings, astronomers studying G29-38 noticed an
unusual and unknown source of infrared light. Only HD 69830 was found to possibly host an asteroid belt.

astrophysics observatory

This is the first observational evidence that comets can outlive
their suns.

NASA's Spitzer Telescope Sees Signs of Alien Asteroid Belt

mbcaa asteroids

They also occasionally crash into
planets, as comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 did when it plunged into Jupiter.
For artist's concepts and more information related to this release on the
Internet , visit:

http://www.

asteroids photometry

"We can't directly see other terrestrial planets, but
now we can study their dusty fossils," he added.
Yet, the two belts may have one important trait in common. The dust most likely
came from an asteroid belt in which dusty smash-ups occur relatively
frequently, about every 1,000 years.

astronomers relying

Spitzer is helping us understand
how planetary systems evolve in tandem with their parent stars," said David
Leisawitz, NASA's Spitzer program scientist.caltech . There are two other known distant
asteroid belts, but they circle younger, more massive stars.
"Because this belt has more asteroids than ours, collisions are larger and
more frequent, which is why Spitzer could detect the belt," said Dr.nasa.

motivated 9p

Kuchner presented his findings today at the 207th meeting of the American
Astronomical Society in Washington.
Asteroid belts are the junkyards of planetary systems.

extraterrestrial dyke

The discovery offers astronomers a rare
glimpse at a distant star system that resembles our home, and may represent a
significant step toward learning if and where other Earths form.

mbcaa photometry

The alien belt is also much closer to its star.

tempel astrophysics

nasa. In our solar
system , Jupiter acts as an outer wall to the asteroid belt, shepherding its
debris into a series of bands . Similarly, an unseen planet the size of Saturn
or smaller may be marshalling the star's rubble.

One of NASA's future planet-hunting missions, SIM PlanetQuest, may
ultimately identify such a planet orbiting this star.
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the Spitzer Space Telescope mission
for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington.

transient asteroids

"Astronomers have known for decades that stars are born, have an extended
middle age, and then wither away or explode. These data told astronomers the light was coming from the
same types of dusty minerals found in comets in our solar system.
For artists' concepts, other graphics and more information about Spitzer
on the Web , visit:

http://www.gov/home/

radial puckett

However, these trips to the
tropics often end in destruction. Comets slowly disintegrate as they pass
close to the sun or they crash into it. WASHINGTON, NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has
spotted what may be the dusty spray of asteroids banging together in a belt
that orbits a star like our sun.
They did not see the asteroids themselves, but detected a thick disk of warm
dust confined to the inner portion of the star system .

photometry radial

WASHINGTON, NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope spotted
what may be comet dust sprinkled around the white dwarf star G29-38, that died
approximately 500 million years ago. As the stars aged over billions of years, they
grew brighter and eventually swelled in size to become red giants., manages the Spitzer
Space Telescope mission for the agency's Science Mission Directorate. If our solar system had a belt this dense, its dust would light up
the night skies as a brilliant band. According to the
astronomers , it is possible a giant comet, almost as big as Pluto, got knocked
into the inner solar system and is slowly boiling away, leaving a trail of
dust.

tempel variable

The findings suggest the star, which most likely consumed its inner
planets, is still orbited by a ring of surviving comets and possibly outer
planets. Millions of
years later, the red giants shed their outer atmospheres, leaving behind white
dwarfs.edu/spitzer

For more information about NASA and agency programs on the Web , visit:

http://www.caltech.

cataclysmic variable

If any planets orbited in these systems, the red giants would have
engulfed at least the inner ones.
"We detected a large quantity of very small, dirty silicate grains," said
astronomer Marc Kuchner of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. "Our present-day
solar system is a quieter place, with impacts of the scale that killed the
dinosaurs occurring only every 100 million years or so.
"The 'super comet' theory is more of a long shot," Beichman said, "but
we'll know soon enough.

observers supernovae

Science
operations are conducted at the Spitzer Science Center at Caltech."
To confirm the dust detected by Spitzer is indeed ground-up asteroids, a
second less-likely theory will have to be ruled out.

9p coddenham

"
In our own solar system, comets reside in the cold outer fringes in
regions known as the Kuiper Belt and Oort Cloud.
While this new belt is the closest known match to our own, it is not a
perfect twin. One of these crystals is the bright green-colored gem called
forsterite.

This category lists sites describing major scientific research projects being carried out by individuals or groups of skilled , motivated amateur astronomers.

transient contributions

"Asteroids are the leftover building blocks of rocky planets like Earth,"
said Dr. It is thicker than our asteroid belt, with 25 times as much
material." Future observations of the star using Spitzer and
ground-based telescopes are expected to conclude whether asteroids or comets
are the source of the dust.spitzer.edu/spitzer

For information about NASA and agency programs on the Internet, visit:

http://www.