B "Snow" on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko is actually stars

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The ESA's Rosetta mission captured footage of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, showcasing what appeared to be snowy weather on the comet's surface. However, a user pointed out that much of this "snow" is actually background stars, with only some of the visible particles being true icy volatiles. The initial perception of snow was misleading, as the fast-moving streaks identified as snow were misinterpreted without proper image processing. This confusion highlights the importance of careful analysis in interpreting space imagery. Overall, the discussion emphasizes that the apparent snow on the comet is primarily stars, not ice.
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"Snow" on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko is actually stars.
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9.) Snowy weather on comets. The ESA’s Rosetta mission witnessed cometary “snow” firsthand.

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The most spectacular movie from ESA's Rosetta mission shows what the surface of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko looks like, including the volatile ices that sublimate and re-freeze when they're in sunlight or shadow, respectively, causing this snow-like behavior.
ESA/Rosetta/NAVCAM

However, landru79 (twitter) has rearranged the frames to show that most of the falling "snow" is actually background stars.
P38FEXeyvW5SK7smWHCEwS-970-80.gif
 
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The snow that is not stars is snow. Is this unclear?
 
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Keith_McClary said:
Summary:: "Snow" on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko is actually stars.

Snowy weather on comets. The ESA’s Rosetta mission witnessed cometary “snow” firsthand.
Amazing clip!
 
Keith_McClary said:
Summary:: "Snow" on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko is actually stars.

This statement is, of course, incorrect

Vanadium 50 said:
The snow that is not stars is snow. Is this unclear?

Exactly, the background points of light are mostly stars. The fast moving foreground streaks are the "snow" icy volatiles
 
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davenn said:
This statement is, of course, incorrect
To be quite honest, the stuff in the initial movie that looks like snow is not snow. We don't see the 'real snow' looking like it does - except perhaps in a short film clip when we're driving though it? A very easy mistake. It needed the image processing to resolve the confusion - cleverly done, imo.
 

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