Comet Facts
Comet Facts
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Interesting Comet Facts: |
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About 30% of a comet is made up of metals. |
The orbital times for comets can range from several years to millions of years. |
Most comets are too small and too far away to be detected from Earth. |
Gas and water make up about 70% of a comet. |
Comets orbit the Sun in an oval pattern. |
Comets are made in the Kuiper Belt and the Oort Cloud. |
Usually comets remain in the outer edges of the Solar System until they bump into each other changing their direction. |
Comets only have tails when they are melting. |
Comets can be up to 40 kilometers across. |
Haley's Comet, the most well-known comet, appears once every 76 years. |
Comets that orbit less than 200 years are referred to as short term comets. |
Haley's Comet is an example of a short term comet. |
The next appearance of Haley's Comet is expected to occur sometime in the year 2061. |
Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 is another known comet that collided with Jupiter in 1994. |
Small comets are about 1 kilometer across. |
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