NASA's robotic space probe EPOXI/Deep Impact approached Comet Hartley-2 on November 4, 2010, for the fifth – and closest – time. The probe, which came within approximately 700 kilometers (435 miles), returned the first ever photographs of the comet’s nucleus.
These images were taken around the approximate time of closest approach. Although this image is unprocessed, some surface features of the comet’s icy nucleus are visible. For instance, jets appear to be ejecting vapor into space along the comet’s bottom right-hand surface. (Further analysis will have to wait until higher resolution, processed photographs become available.)
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