14 DAY TRIAL // Although multiple solar telescopes were trained on Comet ISON as it reached its perihelion on November 28, 2013, astronomers are still unsure as to what happened to the object. What is certain is that it lost a lot of mass during its close encounter with the Sun, but exactly how much is unknown.
Some astronomers suggest that the comet's core, or at least portions of it, survived perihelion, and are now heading farther out into the solar system. The video above clearly shows that parts of the comet managed to swing past the Sun, but scientists have yet to establish if these are just debris or not.
The NASA Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) and Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), and the joint NASA/European Space Agency Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft watched Comet ISON as it met the Sun late last month.
Since data from these telescopes is inconclusive as of early December, astronomers are waiting for some observation time to clear up on the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. Observations with this instrument will be able to clear out the mystery of what happened to Comet ISON, and if the cloud of particles that escaped the Sun last week features portions of the object's core or not.