What Are Comet Tails?

Comets are renowned for their big beautiful tails that stretch across the sky. But what's in those things, anyway? And how can comets get multiple tails?

[busterevans]

I've heard about Haley's Comet Haley's Comet ever since I was a kid so I guess I'd have to say that Haley's comet would be my favorite comet shows up about every 76years.

[kEvilEd]

I have to say the Hale-Bopp comet was my favorite.  I was able to go outside and see it with the naked eye for days.  It is a shame what happened during that time, but in the end it was still very beautiful!

[rwired]

My favorite comet: Shoemaker–Levy 9, obviously.

[patrickcalhoon]

Panstarr its the only one iv seen that i remeber it was a awesome comet to see during the day!

[fasulia]

Avatar reference? I think I love you bro

[kelvin]

ive got a question for you fraiser.
Hale-Bopp was my favourite i remember watching that one for a good week or so when it went past.

what i dont understand is how a commet can leve a tail for so long. if the tail is made up from dust or gas, the comet must be the sorce of the gasses it leves behind ? that we can see or the dust which we can see as tail...

why do these resorces of dust and gas deplete so slowly ?

Hale-Bopp as a case in point has been in orbit now around our sun for thousands of years. but it can still be seen leveing a tail even now.

[derrickmcadoo]

If you wanted to perform a 'Tokyo Drift' in a space vehicle, you would perform exactly how Comets performs. Long, relatively-straight approach, to gain momentum (inertia), then use the Sun's Gravity (not solar winds=lame), to swing around.. Always facing the sun's gravity - while producing exhaust opposite. Just like a ground vehicle.

[richardwise]

So, when you see the tail of a comment, is it always being hit by solar wind? Why does it get lit and become visible? Thank you to whoever can answer these :)

[r.w.keeler]

I'll be using this with some homeschooled kids tomorrow. I picked this one out of the others 'out there' because it's accurate AND a bunch of these kids are avatar fans.  It's perfect.

[photoggenes]

Updating this video, the newest visible comet is NEOWISE C/2020 F3

[jmm]

fav comet is no longer with us, Comet ISON showd us in detail and almost live footage of what happens to comet when it gets too close to the sun

[luketracey]

Pushed away by solar wind ? Thought there was no friction in space ?? Lmao

[johnnyj]

Comet Hale-Bopp is on top of my list as it is the only one I could see with the naked eye, although I have to agree with rwire, to see video of an event like Shoemaker-Levy 9 occur is spectacular in itself.

[eaglelandedjupiter]

my favorite Comet and meteoris the one that don't hit me in the head

[oyvinator]

Hope Sephiroth haven been out with his black materia again :-p

[Riloo]

hey Fraser Cain i have a question: how did William Herschel found Uranus in the 1781 with a 3-10x telescope, i mean how did he knew that that is a planet? thank u.

[IRONMANAustralia]

I'll tell you my *least* favourite comet:  Halley's.  That thing came by when I was in school and my idiot teacher wouldn't shut up about it.

Every school project we were forced to do involved that useless ball of cosmological crap in some way, shape, or form - as if it was the most important object in the universe.  Man that got old fast.

[JoeBlow-zrru]

My favorite comet is... comet boB
There is no other worth considering.
It's boB all the way. 🥳

[matticusminot]

Halley's comet travels 2, 000mph and has a tail. The sun travels 96, 600 mph how does it not have a tail? Unless Earth is the center of universe