AST-257beginner

Comets & Cometary Activity: Structures & Vocabulary

Comets are ice-rich small bodies that become active when approaching the Sun. Comets preserve primitive material from cold outer regions of the early Solar System and connect the Kuiper belt and Oort cloud to the inner Solar System.

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beginner38 minFact checked

Comets & Cometary Activity: Structures & Vocabulary

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AST-256Comets & Cometary Activity: Foundations→

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AST-258Comets & Cometary Activity: Physical Mechanisms→

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Comets are ice-rich small bodies that become active when approaching the Sun.

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As the nucleus warms, volatile molecules sublimate and drag dust from the surface.

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Spacecraft such as Giotto, Deep Impact, Stardust, and Rosetta have imaged nuclei directly and sampled comet material.