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S. A. Severson (University of Chicago)
I present a revised picture of the impacts of the fragments of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 with Jupiter. This work is based on the results of the South Pole Infrared Explorer (SPIREX). The SPIREX telescope enjoyed a nearly uninterrupted view of this event from it's unique vantage point, providing a large and uniform overview of the fragment impacts. I will first present a review of the SPIREX 2.22 and 2.36 micron lightcurves taken during eighteen of the predicted impact times. I will then discuss their implications, including impact timings and energies. Most importantly, I have concluded that the impacts of the middle-train fragments differed from those of the other fragments. They produced what I call a prolonged ``fountain'' of ejecta. I will discuss the significance of this finding.
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The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: severson@oddjob.uchicago.edu