comet

[kom-it] /ˈkɒm ɪt/
noun, Astronomy
1.
a celestial body moving about the sun, usually in a highly eccentric orbit, consisting of a central mass surrounded by an envelope of dust and gas that may form a tail that streams away from the sun.
Origin
1150-1200; Middle English comete < Anglo-French, Old French < Latin comētēs, comēta < Greek komḗtēs wearing long hair, equivalent to komē-, variant stem of komân to let one's hair grow (derivative of kómē hair) + -tēs agent suffix
Related forms
cometary
[kom-i-ter-ee] /ˈkɒm ɪˌtɛr i/ (Show IPA),
cometic
[kuh-met-ik] /kəˈmɛt ɪk/ (Show IPA),
cometical, adjective
cometlike, adjective
Examples from the web for comets
  • In the nineteenth century, filibusters were rarer than visible comets.
  • As for comets, conventional wisdom held that they also bombarded the planets during the early eons.
  • Marigolds and petunias were recast as blazing comets or flying saucers in outer space.
  • Asteroids, moons and comets have all been added to the stamp album.
  • Computing offices calculated ballistics trajectories, processed census statistics and charted the course of comets.
  • Asteroids, comets and meteors are cosmic debris left from the formation of the solar system.
  • It was later discovered to be one of the biggest and brightest known comets.
  • In addition, there are thousands of small bodies such as asteroids and comets.
  • Asteroids and comets in nearby space pose a constant threat to our planet.
  • comets are seen as the building blocks of the solar system.
British Dictionary definitions for comets

comet

/ˈkɒmɪt/
noun
1.
a celestial body that travels around the sun, usually in a highly elliptical orbit: thought to consist of a solid frozen nucleus part of which vaporizes on approaching the sun to form a gaseous luminous coma and a long luminous tail
Derived Forms
cometary, cometic (kɒˈmɛtɪk) adjective
Word Origin
C13: from Old French comète, from Latin comēta, from Greek komētēs long-haired, from komē hair
Word Origin and History for comets

comet

n.

c.1200, from Old French comete (12c., Modern French comète), from Latin cometa, from Greek (aster) kometes, literally "long-haired (star)," from kome "hair of the head" (cf. koman "let the hair grow long"), of unknown origin. So called from resemblance of a comet's tail to streaming hair.

comets in Science
comet
(kŏm'ĭt)
A celestial object that orbits the Sun along an elongated path. A comet that is not near the Sun consists only of a nucleus—a solid core of frozen water, frozen gases, and dust. When a comet comes close to the Sun, its nucleus heats up and releases a gaseous coma that surrounds the nucleus. A comet forms a tail when solar heat or wind forces dust or gas off its coma, with the tail always streaming away from the Sun. ◇ Short-period comets have orbital periods of less than 200 years and come from the region known as the Kuiper belt. Long-period comets have periods greater than 200 years and come from the Oort cloud. See more at Kuiper belt, Oort cloud. See Note at solar system.

comets in Culture

comet definition


An object that enters the inner solar system, typically in a very elongated orbit around the sun. Material is boiled off from the comet by the heat of the sun, so that a characteristic tail is formed. The path of a comet can be in the form of an ellipse or a hyperbola. If it follows a hyperbolic path, it enters the solar system once and then leaves forever. If its path is an ellipse, it stays in orbit around the sun.

Note: Comets were once believed to be omens, and their appearances in the sky were greatly feared or welcomed.
Note: The most famous comet, Comet Halley (or Halley's comet), passes close to the Earth roughly every seventy-six years, most recently in 1986.
Related Abbreviations for comets

COMET

Cooperative Program for Operational Meteorology, Education, and Training (National Center for Atmospheric Research)