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Story summary
- The spin of Comet 41P/Tuttle-Giacobini-Kresák reversed after its closest approach to the Sun in April 2017.
- Outgassing jets drove that reversal.
- David Jewitt of UCLA analyzed Hubble Space Telescope images and found the rotation slowed from 20 hours to 46 hours.
- This change represents the first direct observation of such a rapid spin alteration in a comet.
- The comet will be observed again in 2028.
