Comet is the smallest body contained in the solar system, has similarity to an asteroid and is mostly made up of ice. In the past, comets produced fears and superstitions in people and nowadays they cause enormous curiosity.
They can be periodic (as is the case with Comet Halley, which passes through the solar system at intervals of about 76 years) and not periodic, which are those that rapidly enter and exit the solar system towards space interstellar. A comet has a physical structure divided into three parts: nucleus, hair or coma and tail.
Hale-Bopp Comet
They can be periodic (as is the case with Comet Halley, which passes through the solar system at intervals of about 76 years) and not periodic, which are those that rapidly enter and exit the solar system towards space interstellar. A comet has a physical structure divided into three parts: nucleus, hair or coma and tail.
Core: this part of the comet is only a few kilometers in diameter, in which most of the phenomena of a comet originate. When this structure passes close to the Sun it generates the tail of the comet, producing a large amount of matter. The matter that makes up the core has a weight that can vary from 1.0 kg to tens of tons.
Hair or eat: it is a nebulous part that is found on top of the nucleus, basically constituted by hydrogen, oxygen and water in the solid state.
Tail: it is one of the units of a comet that arises from solar winds. Each time the comet approaches the Sun, its diameter decreases a few meters. There are two types of tails: one formed by dust and one electromagnetic.
By Eduardo de Freitas
Graduated in Geography