Astronomy Picture of the Day . ... 31.01.1997 . ... Credit Copyright: ESA , NASA , Explanation: This carrot shaped track is actually little more than 5 hundredths of an inch long. ... NASA's Stardust mission , planned for launch in 1999, will attempt to directly collect dust from the tail of a comet and return it to Earth -- the first non- lunar sample return mission ever! ... February 1997 . ... 1997 1998 . 1999 2000 . ... NASA Official: Jay Norris. ... U. Based on Astronomy Picture Of the Day ...