Comet - the mystery of the universe

Comets are often associated with some bad omen. In 1997, the arrival of comet Hale-Bopp triggered a mass suicide of a group of fanatics, who claimed to have reached the end of the world.

The cyanogen - at the tail of the comet Halley after the collision between the earth and the tail of the comet, is also rumored to be poisoning to humans.

What is a comet?

Comet is an astronomical object that flies in space, it is almost an asteroid, but is not composed of rocks but mostly from ice . The reason they are called comets is because they often have a strange shape, a pointed, big tail like a broom sweeping a house. Scientists have described it as "a dirty snow ball" because it contains carbonic, methane, icy water mixed with dust and minerals.

Another theory is that it rejects the theory of comets as ' stars ' because it is thought to be just a mass of cold air filled with cosmic debris and dust. It is the " mother " of the stars that glow in the sky, because when it breaks, it will form clusters of cosmic ice and dust into space. Depending on the time and location of the comet's break, it is possible to observe meteorites from the earth.

Halley comet.(Photo: chimetv.com).

Astronomers divided comets into three types: short, long-term and transient comets. Short-term comets have orbital cycles of less than 200 years, long-term comets have larger cycles. The transient comet star has a parabolic or hypecbol trajectory, which flies through the sun once and will go away forever afterwards.

Each year, hundreds of comets are created in space but only large comets with special cycles are noted, such as the famous Halley comet. It was discovered in the 18th century and the first comet to be discovered returned to earth. Scientists predict it will return to Earth in the 21st century, around 2061.

Where does the comet come from?

Research by the European Aviation Authority suggests that comets originate from the Oort cloud outside the solar system and are the boundary between the solar system and other planetary systems. Comets contain the material of the solar system's birth, so they become objects of research by scientists to answer questions about the evolution of the solar system as well as the planetary systems. Other in the universe.

Most comets have very flat elliptical orbits, randomly distributed in space. The tail of the comet is due to the passage of the sun (the elliptical orbit of the comet is centered on the sun), the ice of the comet melts to form the tail, but also because the visits are very close to the sun. that is, the tail of the comet is getting shorter as the ice is lost.

The US launched the Deep Impact spacecraft into the comet Temple 1 to study its cause. Scientists at the US Aerospace Agency (NASA) hope to get information about our solar system with the first chemical structure of life.

The Deep Impact spacecraft was launched at Comet Temple 1. (Photo: universetoday).

No planet in the solar system compares to volume comets. It consists of 3 parts: broom, broom and broom. The core of the broom is made of solid solid particles, the light radiating around is brooms. The core combined with the fiber forming the broom head, and the tail is not present at the time of the comet formation, which is obtained when it passes through the sun. The solar winds blew away the molecules of the comet and formed a tail that glowed behind. There is a tail of a comet that lasts millions of kilometers.

Since the 18th century, Isaac Newton has argued that comets are objects that are helping the earth's existence, providing moisture to the earth - a condition for maintaining the life of all species. Until now, scientists are still learning about the phenomenon of fascinating and mysterious universe still unexplored.

Modern science and comets

A series of expeditions to learn about this celestial body have been made. Russian, American or European space research agencies have entered, but comets are still a secret to humans. In 2001, the US ship Deep Space 1 flew over Borrelly comet nucleus to learn about its structure, or the Stardust was launched into Wild 2 comet to collect dust particles for research. Expected in 2014, the ship Rosseta will bring a research station to comet surface Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko.(Photo: astronomy).

Comets do not always have a sparkling beauty in the sky, but there are also potential risks when it flies near Earth's orbit. In any planet, comets are always attracted to gravity and collisions between the earth and outer celestial bodies are inevitable. It will create strong vibrations on the surface of the earth, even creating earthquakes, snowslides or tsunami waves hundreds of meters high .

According to scientists, daily, the earth must suffer dozens of small meteorites or dust from the universe, but only large meteorite pieces such as comets are dangerous to our earth. However, scientists have always calculated to keep the earth away from such collisions. A rocket that carries a nuclear warhead will break or deflect the orbit of the comet.

K.Harpher, of NASA, said that although it is composed of carbonic, methane, frozen water, high molecular organic compounds and minerals, the origin of comets is in its nucleus. The comet nucleus consists of heavy minerals or polymeric organic substances, covered with a dark surface, capable of absorbing very strong heat, thus evaporating the gases and forming dust surrounding, sometimes up to hundreds of thousands of kilometers, forming a stretch. Thanks to sunlight, when we look at it from the earth, it is a light like a broom. Another surprising thing for the scientific world is that this object also emits X-rays, which is due to the interaction between the solar wind and the comet.

Although humans are constantly learning about comets, it is still full of mysteries and is still a wonder of nature, attracting scientists to learn and explore. And every comet that forms or loses by colliding with other celestial bodies always gives scientists a question and a question that must be answered.