UNDERSTANDING COMET
Comets are celestial bodies were covered with a thin mist
long and resembles a tail. Comets often called a comet or latitude kemukus.
Many experts argue that comets are debris from the solar system formed 4.6
billion years ago. It is estimated there are more than 1,000 pieces of comet
passing near the sun in every century. Of the amount, only a little comet is
bright enough to be seen with the naked eye. The most famous comet is Halley's
comet passing near the sun every 76 years and appeared in 1910 and 1986.
Another example is comet Encke circulated once every 3.3 years and the comet
Kohoutek circulated once every 2,000 years.
Comets formed from ice and dust. Comets consist of a
collection of dust and gas that freezes at the time to be away from the sun.
When approaching the Sun, some of the material making up comets vaporize to
form the head and tail gas. Comets also around the Sun, so it is included in
the solar system. Comets an incandescent gas with orbits that vary. Long
"tail" of comets can reach millions km. Some comets travel longer
distances in space rather than a planet. Some comets require thousands of years
to complete one orbit of the Sun.
THE PARTS OF A COMET IS AS FOLLOWS.
1. The nucleus / core
Nucleus / core is the center of a very bright at the head of
the comet. The core may reach 100. Up to 10,000 meters. Diameter comet Halley
is approximately 5,000 meters. Astronomers believe that comets nucleus in the
form of "dirty snowballs" composed of dust, fragments of rock, frozen
methane, frozen ammonia, carbon dioxide is frozen, and other forms of ice.
Further research on comet Halley that provide clearer information about the
core or nucleus of the comet.
2. Coma
Coma of gas and dust is seen around the nucleus. Koma formed
when the solar radiation melt this section. Coma diameter can reach 2 million
km and visible when the comet approaches the sun.
TYPES COMET
Based on the shape and length of its trajectory, the comet
can be classified into two types as follows.
1.
Long-tailed comet,
the comet with a trajectory line very far through areas that are very cold in
space so that the opportunity to absorb gases that passed through the area.
When approaching the Sun, the comet is releasing the gas to form a coma and a
very long tail. For example, Kohoutek comet passing near the Sun once every
75,000 years and Halley's Comet every 76 years.
2.
Short-tailed comet,
the comet with a very short trajectory line thus have less opportunity to
absorb the gas in the path. When approaching the Sun, the comet is releasing
very little gas so that only form coma and very short tail and almost no tail.
Examples Encke comet passing near the Sun once every 3.3 years.
Halley's Comet in 1910 that appeared brighter than the
brightest star in the constellation of Ursa Major and looked across more than
halfway around the night sky. The emergence of this comet was first predicted
by Edmond Halley in 1705. He estimates that Halley's comet would appear every
76 years.
