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EarthSolar t1_ixjg46x wrote

Reply to comment by PhoenixReborn in what would happen if a liquid mass of water collided with earth? by Brave-Line-6326

It would evaporate, actually. Water can only be gas or solid in vacuum, and the temperature of the sublimation point is far lower due to the lack of pressure. At Earth’s distance, there is more than enough irradiance to simply turn all the water into gas.

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WictImov t1_ixjs3qi wrote

Halley's comet travels inside of Earth's orbit. It's perihelion is ~0.6au (aphelion is over 35 au). 1 au (astronomical unit) is the distance of the Earth from the Sun.

Halley's comet is roughly equal parts ice and dust. The ice is about 80% water, and most of the rest is carbon monoxide. Yes the Sun's irradiance will sublimate the ice, but there is also a time factor.

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EarthSolar t1_ixjui52 wrote

Yeah, but the water here starts out as liquid, as stated in the question, I don’t think it would be frozen.

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This_Username_42 t1_ixkwaw0 wrote

It would nearly immediately freeze.

The vacuum of space would cause water to boil off, drawing energy from the mass until it froze

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EarthSolar t1_ixl9k8e wrote

Oh right, thanks for reminding me of that effect. I concede.

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