|
|
Hyakutake: Stars Through A C
…
| Title |
Hyakutake: Stars Through A Comet's Tail |
| Explanation |
Comets are cosmic icebergs [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950821.html ]. They follow very elongated orbits which carry them from [ http://whyfiles.news.wisc.edu/011comets/live.html ] the frozen, remote outer reaches of the Solar System to close encounters with the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap970226.html ]. Heated by sunlight, they slough off layers of material [ http://whyfiles.news.wisc.edu/011comets/crecipe.html ] as gas and dust, forming their characteristic awe-inspiring [ http://whyfiles.news.wisc.edu/011comets/folklore.html ] comas (heads) and tails. In the spring of 1996, Comet Hyakutake [ http://whyfiles.news.wisc.edu/011comets/hya_lessons.html ] inspired Arizona photographers Rick Scott [ http://members.home.com/rmscott/ ] and Joe Orman to take this picture showing faint stars near the constellation Ursa Minor [ http://www.astro.wisc.edu/~dolan/constellations/ constellations/Ursa_Minor.html ] (the Little Dipper) shining through the comet's long, graceful tail. Blown by the solar wind, comet tails [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960502.html ] generally point [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980220.html ] away from the Sun. |
|
|
