Comet Hale-Bopp. Optical image of comet Hale-Bopp being watched by the silhouette of a man. Hale- Bopp was one of the brightest comets of the 20th century. Its gas or "ion" tail (blue) consists of ionised glowing gas blown away from the comet head by the solar wind. The dust tail (white) consists of grains of dust pushed away from the comet head by the radiation of sunlight. Comets have a nucleus of ice and dust. As they approach the Sun their surface evaporates,releasing a tail millions of kilometres long. Photographed on 5th April 1997 from the desert in southern Utah,USA | |
Lizenzart: | Lizenzpflichtig |
Credit: | Science Photo Library / Chumack, John |
Bildgröße: | 3105 px × 4732 px |
Modell-Rechte: | nicht erforderlich |
Eigentums-Rechte: | nicht erforderlich |
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