Halley's Comet
Halley's Comet is a famous comet that returns about every 76 years and is the parent of two meteor showers.
Halley's Comet, officially 1P/Halley, is the best-known comet. In 1705 the English astronomer Edmond Halley realised that comets seen in 1531, 1607 and 1682 were the same object returning, and predicted it would come back in 1758. It did, after his death, and was named in his honour.
The comet orbits the Sun about every 75 to 76 years. It last passed close to the Sun in February 1986, when several spacecraft, including Europe's Giotto, the Soviet Vega probes and two Japanese craft, flew past it. It will next return in 2061.
As the comet travels, it sheds dust. Earth crosses this dusty trail twice a year, producing two meteor showers: the Eta Aquariids in May and the Orionids in October. So even when the comet is far away, you can see tiny pieces of it burning up in our sky.
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Level: Beginner Ages 7 and up