A comet is a small celestial object made of ice, dust, and rocky material that orbits the Sun. When a comet gets close to the Sun, it heats up and releases gas and dust, forming a glowing head called a coma and often a tail that points away from the Sun.
Comets have two types of tails: a dust tail, which is white or yellow, and an ion (gas) tail, which is blue and always points directly away from the Sun due to the solar wind.
Halley's Comet is one of the most famous comets, visible from Earth every 76 years. It was last seen in 1986 and will return in 2061.
As of now, astronomers have discovered and cataloged over 4,584 comets. This number includes both short-period comets, which take less than 200 years to complete an orbit around the Sun, and long-period comets, which can take thousands to millions of years.
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