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Comets
Comets are small solar system bodies that orbit around the Sun. They have a tail (trail of light) when traveling in space.
1,186 Questions
Why does a comet appear to have a fiery look?
Comets are made of ice, rock, cosmic dust, ammonia, carbon dioxide, methane ice and water. Density will vary depending on it's exact composition. Being that its primary component is water ice, it's specific density will be very close to 1. That is a comet is likely just less dense than water. A large comet if landed softly in the ocean would probably float.
In what region are most comets at?
We generally believe that comets with orbits of 200 years or less, traveling in the ecliptic plane, come from the Kuiper Belt. Those comets with longer orbits, or that travel at angles to the ecliptic plane, come from the Oort Cloud.
Why was the Hale-Bopp comet special?
The Hale-Bopp comet is relatively rare - it only passes close to the Earth once every 76 years.
In the last pass, there were several groups that felt there were supernatural or mystical properties of the comet. Some of these groups were covered by the media, although I don't believe anything horrible happened.
What songs were popular from Bill Haley and the Comets?
A 1951 recording on Holiday Records entitled Rocket 88 - a version of the rhythm and blues song by Jackie Brentson converted into rock and roll by way of the addition of a country music arrangement - is considered Haley's (and the world's) first true rock and roll record. However a recently discovered 1950 recording entitled Teardrops From My Eyes reveals Haley was already taking rhythm and blues songs and adding country western arrangements a year earlier than Rocket 88.
What are major differences between comets and asteroids?
The main difference between asteroids and comets is what they are made of. Asteroids are made of metals and rocky material, while comets are made up of ice, dust and some rocky material. Both asteroids and comets were formed early in the history of the solar system, about 4.5 billion years ago. Asteroids formed much closer to the Sun, where it was too warm for ices to remain solid. Comets formed farther from the Sun where ices would not melt. Comets which approach the Sun lose material with each orbit because some of their ice melts and vaporizes to form a tail.
An asteroid is a small, inactive body, made up of rock, carbon or metal, that orbits the Sun.
A comet is also a small, but sometimes active object, made of dirt and ice. Comets are able to be seen by their characteristic tails as they become affected by the heat of the Sun. The tail of a comet is pushed away from the Sun. It does not necessarily trail behind it.
Comets follow highly elliptical orbits, approaching the inner solar system and then retreating to a considerable distance from the Sun. If they stayed close in to the Sun, all the ice would vaporize, and they would cease to be comets. Most asteroids tend to have more nearly circular orbits, although some develop more elongated orbits as a result of gravitational interactions with the planets or other asteroids.
Asteroids have diameters anywhere from a few meters to a few hundred kilometers. Only about 200 asteroids have diameters exceeding 100 kilometers. Most rotate on their axes every 5 to 20 hours. Most asteroids in the solar system are located in the 'asteroid belt', where they orbit the sun in the space between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Some smaller asteroids may orbit larger asteroids as satellites. Asteroids are different from planets and moons mainly because of their much smaller size, and irregular shapes.
Does the shape of the ion tail of a comet depend on the solar winds?
yes. While one would presume that the tail would stretch out behind the comet, in reality the tail is caused by the solar wind blowing dust and gas away from the sun. Thus, no matter what orbit the comet is in or what direction it is travelling, the tail always points away from the sun.
How do comets differ in meteors?
Comets are icy bodies that release gas and dust as they orbit the Sun, forming a tail. They often have highly elliptical orbits that can take them far from the Sun. Meteors, on the other hand, are small rocky or metallic debris that enter Earth's atmosphere and burn up, creating streaks of light in the sky.
What is the major difference between Comet Hyakutake and Halleys comet?
Halley's Comet was a periodic comet; it returns to the inner system every 76 years.
Hale-Bopp is a very long-period comet; it may have been last seen in 2215 BC. That may have been Hale-Bopp's first approach to the Sun; its orbit was likely altered by close brushes with Jupiter then, and again during its last pass in 1997. Hale-Bopp's next appearance may be in or around the year 4530 AD.
How did ancient people come up with the name comet?
The name comet came from the Greek word komē meaning "hair of the head". Aristotle used this word to mean a luminous tail of a comet. Aristotle also used the derivation komētēs meaning "wearing long hair" to use as a noun meaning comet and to describe comets as "stars with hair". This Greek word was adopted as the Latin word comētēs and later comēta. Comēta is the earliest English forebear of the now "comet".
It is not exactly a sphere, the longest axis is 15km and the shortest one is 8km.
When do you comets develop tails?
A comet is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma (a thin, fuzzy, temporary atmosphere) and sometimes also a tail. In the outer solar system, comets remain frozen and are extremely difficult or impossible to detect from Earth due to their small size. As a comet approaches the inner solar system, solar radiation causes the volatile materials within the comet to vaporize and stream out of the nucleus, carrying dust away with them. The streams of dust and gas thus released form a huge, extremely tenuous atmosphere around the comet called the coma, and the force exerted on the coma by the Sun's radiation pressure and solar wind cause an enormous tail to form, which points away from the sun. Thus, a tail of the coma was formed.
How long did it take for comet Hale-Bopp to orbit the sun?
Hyakutake is a long-period comet. Before its most recent passage through the solar system, its orbital period was about 17,000 years, but the gravitational influence of the giant planets has increased this period to 102,070 years.
What body forms a tail as it approaches the sun?
Comets are celestial objects that have tails and move around the sun. When a comet is moving toward the sun, its tail points toward the sun.
Comets tail always point toward the sun?
No. Comets tails always point away from the sun. I believe the are a result of the heat and solar winds projected out from the sun which strip material off from the comet as it travels through space.
Does a comet always have a tail?
The tail is actually moving away from the comet. The solar wind pushes the dust and ice particles away from the comet as it melts. The ice particles reflects the light from the sun allowing us to see the tail.
In fact, the comet's tail is never behind it. It is always to one side of its direction of travel.
Why is a comets tail is in front of the comet?
A comet's tail is always pointed away from the Sun due to the solar wind. As the comet moves closer to the Sun, solar radiation and solar wind push the dust and gas away from the comet, creating the tail that appears to extend ahead of the comet in its orbit.
Which is closer to the sun asteroids or comets?
It all depends on time in reality, or a given period of time comets can follow a path that comes very close to the sun, although this may occur once over a cycle of hundreds of years. Jovian planets are all located past the frost ring where the asteroid belt can be found. (asteroid belt is in between Mars and Jupiter) Depending on time and what you are looking for asteroids hold the most consistency on average of being closer to the sun.
What do scientists call the study of comets and other things related to space?
Scientists refer to the study of comets and other celestial bodies as astronomy or astrophysics, depending on the specific focus of the research. Cometary science involves studying the composition, behavior, and origins of comets, while broader astronomical research includes investigating the entire universe, including stars, planets, and galaxies.
What is each 4 main parts of a comet made of?
The dark colouration of the nucleus can be observed, as well as the jets of dust and gas erupting from its surface..
Nucleus
Albedo
Layer of Dust
Comets are very cold objects with no atmospheres and very weak gravity. When they go close to the sun the violently eject jets of gas.
What can you see in the sky an asteroid a comet or a meteor?
If you land a space ship on a comet or asteroid, then you can touch those (at great peril); meteorites are meteors that have struck the Earth, so you can touch those here on Earth with much less peril.
No. Comets are not flammable and there is no oxygen in space to support combustion. When a comet gets close enough to the sun the ice it is made of starts to vaporize due to the heat, creating a cloud of gas and dust.
