`` Those early images may not be the 'money shot , ' but we on the science team will prize them just as well , as they will help us further understand the nature of comets , '' said EPOXI principal investigator Mike A'Hearn of the University of Maryland , College Park , in a NASA statement . Comet Hartley A is just 435 miles from spacecraft . EPOXI Deep Impact is the first spacecraft to have visited two comets . Scientists hope to learn more about them from close imagery .
Comet Hartley A is just 435 miles from spacecraft . EPOXI Deep Impact is the first spacecraft to have visited two comets . Scientists hope to learn more about them from close imagery .