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Stardust Seeks Comet for Valentine's Day Rendezvous

   Suzanne Presto | Washington  February 14, 2011
   This  image  provided  by  NASA  shows comet Tempel 1 at the moment of
   impact  with  NASA's Deep Impact probe as it smashed into its surface.
   The  probe crashed between the two dark-rimmed craters near the center
   and bottom of the comet (File Photo - July 4, 2005

Photo: AP

   This  image  provided  by  NASA  shows comet Tempel 1 at the moment of
   impact  with  NASA's Deep Impact probe as it smashed into its surface.
   The  probe crashed between the two dark-rimmed craters near the center
   and bottom of the comet (File Photo - July 4, 2005)

   Ever  run into an old flame a few years after you last saw one another
   and  think  that  he or she looks pretty different, maybe that time or
   sun  exposure  have  taken  their  toll?  Now,  for  the  first  time,
   scientists are planning to follow up with a different body - a comet -
   to see how its looks have changed over the years.

   NASA's  Stardust-NExT spacecraft has a date with a comet called Tempel
   1  on the night of February 14th, which happens to be Valentine's Day.
   During  that  rendezvous,  with  only 200 kilometers between them, the
   Stardust craft will snap 72 high-resolution pictures of Tempel 1.