comet
Icy solar visitor
A comet is a celestial body that orbits the sun, distinguished by a glowing tail of gas and dust that streams behind it when near the sun.
Comets appear periodically—Halley's comet returns roughly every 76 years.
Figuratively, someone who rises to sudden prominence and fades quickly might be called a comet: She blazed through Hollywood like a comet.
Central controlling part
- comaUnwakeable unconsciousness
- dustFine settled particles
- iceWater's solid form
- gasFormless, expanding substance
rocky · volatile · frozen · dirty snowball · water ice · carbon dioxide · ammonia · methane
Orbital point nearest sun
- aphelionFarthest point from sun
- ellipticalOval-shaped or indirect
- parabolicShaped like a conic section
- hyperbolicExaggerated beyond reason
eccentric · long-period · short-period · Oort cloud · Kuiper belt · trajectory · return · approach
Electrified matter state
- streamersDecorative hanging ribbons
- solar windContinuous stellar particle emission
- fluorescenceLight emitted after absorption
- bluePrimary color; also sad
Sign of future calamity
- harbingerOne who foreshadows
- auguryOmen interpretation practice
- prophecyForetelling of future events
- forebodingFearful anticipation of harm
superstition · doom · disaster · bad omen · warning · presage · ill-fated · medieval
Unbroken series
- luminousEmitting or reflecting light
- glowingGiving off steady light
- brilliantIntensely bright or gifted
- spectacularStrikingly impressive to behold
naked-eye · binoculars · telescope · stargazing · night sky · visible · fuzzy · diffuse
Astronomer's surname, comet fame
- Hale-BoppLong-period celestial visitor
- LovejoyCompound surname, two emotions
- WildMinnesota's NHL franchise
- RosettaTrilingual Egyptian artifact
Philae · Giotto · Deep Impact
Directed rate of motion
- fastSpeedy, or skip eating
- swiftMoving with speed
- hypervelocityExtremely high speed
- escape velocitySpeed to overcome gravity
hurtling · streaking · plummeting · trajectory · momentum · acceleration · approach · flyby
nucleus
Central controlling part
gas · rocky · volatile · frozen · dirty snowball · water ice · carbon dioxide · ammonia · methane · silicate
perihelion
Orbital point nearest sun
- aphelionFarthest point from sun
- ellipticalOval-shaped or indirect
- parabolicShaped like a conic section
hyperbolic · eccentric · long-period · short-period · Oort cloud · Kuiper belt · trajectory · return · approach · retrograde
plasma
Electrified matter state
- streamersDecorative hanging ribbons
- solar windContinuous stellar particle emission
- fluorescenceLight emitted after absorption
portent
Sign of future calamity
foreboding · superstition · doom · disaster · bad omen · warning · presage · ill-fated · medieval · ancient
streak
Unbroken series
- luminousEmitting or reflecting light
- glowingGiving off steady light
- brilliantIntensely bright or gifted
spectacular · naked-eye · binoculars · telescope · stargazing · night sky · visible · fuzzy · diffuse · ghostly
Halley
Astronomer's surname, comet fame
- Hale-BoppLong-period celestial visitor
- LovejoyCompound surname, two emotions
- WildMinnesota's NHL franchise
Rosetta · Philae · Giotto · Deep Impact
velocity
Directed rate of motion
- fastSpeedy, or skip eating
- swiftMoving with speed
- hypervelocityExtremely high speed
escape velocity · hurtling · streaking · plummeting · trajectory · momentum · acceleration · approach · flyby · close encounter
- astronomystars, moon, sun, planet, planets
- night skystars, moon, constellations, shooting stars, constellation
- outer spacesun, moon, planet, star system, solar system
- solar systemsun, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn
- celestialsun, moon, stars, planet, planets
- space objectsgalaxy, star cluster, nebula, planet, quasar
cometfixed star
Star showing no planetary motion
Polaris · North Star · pole star · constellation · sun
cometfixed star
Star showing no planetary motion
sun · planet · star · moon · dwarf planet
- Halley's CometPredictable orbiting frozen body
- comet hunterOne who discovers icy bodies
- comet tailLuminous debris wake
- great cometsExceptionally bright tailed bodies
- vomit cometAircraft creating temporary freefall
- comet impactCelestial body striking surface