Star trails and astronomical objects like the Sun, Moon, planets and stellar clusters aren’t the only interesting things to photograph in the night sky. Transitory objects like comets, meteors and artificial satellites are just as exciting and many comets and similar objects are named for their amateur astronomer discoverers.
A comet forms when a small object – which can be up to 20 kilometres in diameter and is usually made up of ice, dust, rock and frozen gases – heats up and begins to ‘outgas’ as it passes close to the Sun. This leaves a trail (‘tail’) of gas and dust behind.
Comets have been observed and recorded since ancient times, although few can actually be seen by the naked eye, making them rare and exciting events. Most have highly eccentric orbits with a wide range of orbital periods, ranging from several years to
