Picture of the comet's coma tinted green by gas fluorescing in sunlight.

The ‘small wonders’ unlocking secrets of the solar system

Modern astronomy is giving us unprecedented views of the asteroids, comets, and other small bodies that litter our cosmic home. These planetary leftovers offer clues to our creation—and potential destruction.

In 2015 comet C/2014 Q2 Lovejoy—seen here in a two-photo mosaic—neared the sun for the first time in millennia. Lovejoy likely hails from the Oort cloud, a distant shell of icy objects thought to surround the solar system. It’s one of the roughly 4,000 known comets among the billions estimated to exist in our cosmic backyard.
Photograph by VELIMIR POPOV AND EMIL IVANOV AT THE IRIDA OBSERVATORY
Published August 24, 2021
25 min read

Hear more about how scientists are using the universe's small objects to answer its big questions on our podcast, Overheard at National Geographic.

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