"The upper tail is the ion tail, which is made up of gases that have been ionized by losing electrons in the sun’s intense light.

The ion tail always points away from the sun in a straight line because it distorts magnetic field lines as it interacts with charged wind particles from the sun, according to the university.

Based on analysis of the comet tail motions, the researchers calculated that large-scale turbulence provides sufficient kinetic energy to drive the high-temperatures observed in the solar wind.

The ion tail is a trail of gas that’s been charged by the sun’s ultraviolet light, and this blue-colored tail aims directly away from the sun.

Comet 3I/ATLAS, the third known and fastest interstellar object to fly across the Solar System, is at it again. The latest ...

Earth is about to have a close encounter with a comet, possibly passing through its ion tail – a rare occurrence. If we are lucky, it could show up as a blue streak in the northern hemisphere ...

As material sheds from a comet’s nucleus, it leaves behind two tails: a thin ion tail, made of charged particles, and a more diffuse dust tail that reflects visible light.

But the charged particles of CMEs, among the worst of solar storms, can slam into a comet's ion tail at about 2.2 million mph (1,000 kilometers per second), causing kinks, scalloped patterns or ...