In 1986, Space Physicist Louis A. Frank at the University of Iowa announced that the Earth was being showered every minute by small comets that break up and deposit large clouds of water vapor in the upper atmosphere. This wasn’t mere speculation; the evidence came from images taken by the Dynamics Explorer spacecraft.
Frank faced an avalanche of criticism from fellow astronomers, geologists, and geophysicists. But a few scientists who were intent on proving him wrong actually confirmed his discovery. Then in the 1990s images from two instruments on another spacecraft named Polar provided “vindication” of his original discovery. This talk will attempt to present some of the evidence for the existence of the small comets and explain Patrick Huyghe's role in the story. It will not detail the extensive controversy which is covered in detail in the new book Cosmic Rain: The Controversial Discovery of Small Comets by Louis A. Frank.
On November 19, 2022 at 2pm Eastern, this talk will be hosted by the Society for Scientific Exploration. Members of the SSE gather at a highly interactive virtual conference space for networking and Q&A. If you would like to attend this event in our exclusive SSE members-only space, join the SSE to receive an invitation.
For the public, a live stream of Patrick's talk will begin at 2pm Eastern and will be freely available at both the SSE’s YouTube channel and Facebook page. Please mark your calendars and visit one of those sites when it is time!