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Here are five shocking surprises from Comet 67P that are keeping scientists awake at night

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Comet 67P is very unique and doesn't quite fit the conventional model of a comet

The recent announcement that Comet 67P/Churymov-Gerasimenko (67P) is rich in oxygen molecules has sent scientists scurrying to explain this extraordinary finding. It is the latest in strange discoveries reported by the Rosetta spacecraft in orbit around the enigmatic object and its special Philae lander reporting from the surface. This could upset conventional wisdom about comets and the formation of our solar system. Here are five shocking surprises from Comet 67P that are keeping scientists awake at night.

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Highlights

1.    67P is rich in oxygen - This discovery is surprising because oxygen is a highly reactive molecule. Oxygen is an abundant molecule in the universe, but it binds very easily with other molecules, such as hydrogen and carbon. Oxygen exists freely in deep space, where supernovas remnants can be found, but very little oxygen exists freely in the solar system. There are two ways oxygen can be produced. The first is it can be forged by nuclear fusion inside the cores of stars. The second, is it can be freed from molecules it has joined with, through biological processes, such as photosynthesis. That creates a huge mystery for scientists to solve.


2.    The comet is two objects fused into one - 67P has an odd shape, sometimes described as a duck. The origin of the odd shape, scientists believe, is from two objects that gently collided, probably billions of years ago in the Kuiper Belt (as opposed to the Oort Cloud where most comets formed), and fused together. Scientists believe this is true not only because of the shape of 67P, but also because the two lobes have different compositions. Both lobes appear to be layered, like an onion, but the composition of the two is different enough for scientists to conclude that 67P formed from two similar, but distinct objects.


3.     The water on 67P is different from the water on Earth - Scientists have found with other comets that they contain the same water as found on Earth, that is, common H2O. This is why scientists believe comets delivered all of the water presently found on Earth. Once the forming Earth cooled enough to allow liquid water to pool on the surface, frequent bombardment with comets delivered enough water to fill the oceans and change the atmosphere. However, 67P has much heavier water than found on Earth. The ratio of deuterium to hydrogen in the molecules is three times more than the water on Earth. Why does this comet have heavier water than all other comets? It remains a mystery.

4.    Comet 67P could harbor life - Comets are rich in organic molecules that are the building blocks of life and 67P is no exception. However, there are other tantalizing clues that 67P might harbor something more than just basic molecules. Some scientists have suggested that its black crust, could be formed by living microorganisms that would be found below the dusty surface. The Rosetta spacecraft itself also appears to have accumulated clusters of organic molecules that some scientists claim resemble microscopic life. Unfortunately, neither Rosetta nor the Philae lander have equipment designed to detect the presence of life. Odds remain that there is no life at all on the comet and that these mysteries can be explained by other means, but for now, they remain mysteries and life is one possible answer.

5.    Scientists could have it all wrong. Scientific discoveries have been announced before, only to be discovered as mistakes when put to the test. Could scientists be wrong about comets, the formation of the solar system and about life itself? It's possible. Comet 67P is distinct from other comets and that invites the possibility that it isn't a comet at all, and instead it could be a unique object, very similar to a traditional comet, but previously undescribed. Every scientific surprise that does not fit the prevailing model causes new hypothesis to be formed and eventually, if enough evidence accumulates, the paradigm shifts and the model changes. Nobody likes to be wrong, but the good news is, when you discover you're wrong, your mind opens up and new understandings take root. Comet 67P could be just the catalyst to provoke that change for the better.

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