disconnection event

disconnection event

The detachment of a cometary plasma tail from the coma of the comet. The detached tail then ‘flows' away from the comet, carried by a loop of interplanetary magnetic field lines that have become draped around the comet. The comet then quickly forms a new plasma tail.
Collins Dictionary of Astronomy © Market House Books Ltd, 2006
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If one advances in a solar wind and were to strike the comet, the most likely thing to happen is that the tail will undergo a disconnection event.
Comet Ison: Will Flip of Sun's Magnetic Field Affect Comet of the Century? [VIDEO]

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