Rules for the Comet Dance Hale-Bopp comes from the South, loops over the Sun's North pole , and back to the South. Some other comets come from the North, and some go over the equator , not the poles. All comets move faster , the closer they are the the Sun. Comets rarely hit planets. Planets move around the Sun's equator , not its poles.
Comet orbits are long ovals .
The comet's tail always points away from the Sun . Questions Some of these questions require visualization in 3D and may be better suited for older students. To think about them, use the models and imagine yourself standing on one of them. Hale-Bopp is thought to take several thousand years to orbit the sun. Think about how fast it moves now, and when it's far away from the Sun.