Comets Comets Comet Facts Unlike the other small bodies in the solar system, comets have been known since antiquity. The famous Bayeux Tapestry, which commemorates the Norman Conquest of England in 1066, depicts an apparition of Comet Halley. This makes them very interesting as samples of the early history of the solar system.
Comets are invisible except when they are near the Sun.
Repeated passes near the Sun boils off most of a comet's ice and gas leaving a rocky object very much like an asteroid in appearance. Meteor shower sometimes occur when the Earth passes thru the orbit of a comet. Comet Halley is the source of the Orionid shower in October. Many comets are first discovered by amateur astronomers. Comet Kohoutek 227k gif CCD image of comet Mueller 93a 96k gif Comet West showing distinct dust and ion tails 111k gif more on Halley and SL9 pages.