1.   But nobody really knows what will happen because nobody knows whether the comet fragments have potent, rocky cores or are simply loose agglomerations of dust and ice.

2.   Hence, before the comet fragments clobbered Jupiter, scientists hoped the plumes would punch deep into the atmosphere and force the water ice out into space.

3.   In other words, these particular comet fragments may not have been dirty snowballs -- just dirty.

4.   One of the puzzles astronomers are probing is the mysterious increase in radio emissions from Jupiter while it was being hit by comet fragments.

5.   Scientists also expected to see water vapor from the comet fragments themselves.

6.   The comet fragments -- essentially rocky mountains sheathed in ice -- are moving like a row of baby ducks waddling toward their fiery doom.

7.   We would be pummeled by comet fragments delivering the same, cumulative amount of destructive energy as the whole thing.

8.   With telescopes around the globe trained on Jupiter, astronomers debated whether the comet fragments would hit with a bang or a whimper.