When a newly discovered comet named Hyakutake passed near Earth about 4 years ago, it made a major spectacle of itself. As well as flaunting two dust tails, it sported a ghostly bluish-white stream of charged particles, extending a third of the way across the sky (SN: 6/1/96, p. 346).
Depiction of the ion tail of Comet Hyakutake, as encountered by the Ulysses craft.
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