Long-period Comets


Long-period comets are comets with an orbital period greater than 200 years. They originate from the Oort Cloud, a hypothetical cloud of icy objects located beyond the Kuiper Belt, and are believed to be remnants from the early Solar System. Long-period comets have highly elliptical orbits that take them far from the Sun, and they can take thousands or even millions of years to complete a single orbit. As they approach the Sun, they heat up and release gas and dust, forming a coma and a tail that can be visible from Earth. Studying long-period comets can provide valuable information about the composition and evolution of the Solar System.


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