What is a dark comet? A quick guide to the ‘new’ kids in the Solar System
The HinduIn 2017, NASA discovered and later confirmed the first interstellar object to enter our Solar System. While their nature and origins remain elusive, astronomers recently confirmed dark comets fall into two main categories: smaller objects that reside in our inner Solar System, and larger objects that remain beyond the orbit of Jupiter. Like bright comets, dark comets follow elongated, elliptical paths that bring them close to the Sun before sweeping back out to the farthest reaches of the Solar System. The discovery of ten new dark comets revealed last week was all thanks to one amazing instrument, the Dark Energy Camera on a large telescope in Chile. This camera can’t “see” dark energy directly, but it was designed to take massive photos of our universe – for us to see distant stars, galaxies and even hidden Solar System objects.
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