Comets & Space Visitors

Key facts

Halley’s Comet

Halley’s Comet is the most famous comet of all, and the only bright comet that comes back often enough that a person can see it twice in a lifetime. Right now it is far out beyond Neptune, on its way back towards the Sun.

Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko

Comet 67P is the first comet a spacecraft has orbited and landed on. Up close, it turned out to be shaped like a giant rubber duck, with cliffs, boulders and jets of gas shooting out as the Sun warmed it.

Comet Hale–Bopp

Hale–Bopp was one of the most-watched comets in history. It was so big and bright that it could be seen even from city streets, and it stayed visible to the naked eye for about a year and a half – a record.

ʻOumuamua

ʻOumuamua was the first object ever seen that came from outside our Solar System. It was oddly long and thin, tumbled as it flew, and sped up slightly as it left – without showing a visible tail.

3I/ATLAS

3I/ATLAS is the third known object from another star system, and the fastest. It is an active comet, growing a tail as it passed the Sun. Some astronomers think it could be billions of years older than our Solar System.

Quiz

1. What is a comet mostly made of?

   • ☐ Hot rock
   • ☐ Ice and dust
   • ☐ Metal
   • ☐ Only gas

2. Which way does a comet’s tail point?

   • ☐ Always behind the comet
   • ☐ Always away from the Sun
   • ☐ Always towards Earth
   • ☐ Straight down

3. What made ʻOumuamua so special?

   • ☐ It was the biggest comet ever
   • ☐ It was the first known visitor from another star system
   • ☐ It crashed into Jupiter
   • ☐ It had three tails

Find it in the sky

Use the Sky Finder at seethestar.com. Tick what you find and write when you saw it.