What is a comet?
Comets are small icy bodies that move in the system solar. They consist mainly of ice, dust and gas, which mix to form a sort of “dirty snowball”. When these objects approach the Sun, the heat causes the sublimation of the ice, that is to say that the ice goes directly from the solid state to the gaseous state, without going through the liquid state. This process creates a visible “tail” of gas and dust that extends behind the comet and can sometimes be seen from Earth.
Comets are fascinating not only because they have spectacular tails, but also because they are considered witnesses to the first stages of the formation of the solar system. Their primitive composition could tell us a lot about the conditions of the early Earth and the birth of life.
The phenomenon of non-gravitational acceleration
When a comet approaches the Sun, the sublimation of the ice creates a flow of gas that is expelled from the surface of the object. This gives rise to an astonishing phenomenon: non-gravitational acceleration. In simple terms, this means that the gas that is expelled from the comet generates thrust, much like a rocket ejecting fuel to propel itself. This push causes the comet to move faster and further than the Sun's gravitational pull could explain alone.
This makes comets particularly interesting to researchers. By studying the non-gravitational acceleration of a comet, scientists can…Read more on Science and life
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