Comet Tails

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semi-major axis
eccentricity
time
The plasma tails of comets point directly away from the Sun and are longest when nearest to the Sun. The orbit of a reference planet is shown in dark blue. Because the position of the planet changes, the orientation of the comet tail may not seem obvious when viewed from the planet.

External Links

Comet (ScienceWorld)
Ellipse (Wolfram MathWorld)
Elliptical Orbit (ScienceWorld)
Orbital Elements (ScienceWorld)

Permanent Citation

Jeff Bryant
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​"Comet Tails"​
​http://demonstrations.wolfram.com/CometTails/​
​Wolfram Demonstrations Project​
​Published: September 28, 2007