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Credit & Copyright: John Gleason
(Celestial Images)
Explanation:
In 1977,
Comet Hale-Bopp's intrinsic
brightness exceeded any comet since
1811.
Since it peaked on the other side of the Earth's orbit,
however, the comet appeared only brighter
than any comet in
two decades.
Visible above are the
two tails shed by
Comet Hale-Bopp.
The
blue ion tail is composed of ionized gas molecules,
of which
carbon monoxide particularly glows blue when reacquiring
electrons.
This tail is created by the particles from the fast
solar wind interacting
with gas from the comet's head.
The blue
ion tail points directly away from the
Sun.
The white
dust tail is created
by bits of grit that have come off the
comet's nucleus
and are being pushed away by the
pressure of light from the Sun.
This tail points nearly away from the Sun.
The
above photograph was taken in March 1997.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: comet - dust - tail - Comet Hale-Bopp
Publications with words: comet - dust - tail - Comet Hale-Bopp
See also:
- APOD: 2026 April 20 Á Comet R3 PanSTARRS over a Himalayan Valley
- APOD: 2026 April 18 Á PanSTARRS and Planets
- APOD: 2026 April 14 Á The Long Wispy Tail of Comet R3 (PanSTARRS)
- APOD: 2026 April 12 Á Comet R3 PanSTARRS Brightens
- APOD: 2026 February 17 Á Tails of Comet Wierzchoå
- LDN 1622: Dark Nebula in Orion
- NGC 7023: The Iris Nebula