Solar Storm Whips Away Comet Nishimura's Tail in Stunning Time-lapse
NASA's STEREO-A spacecraft captured video footage of Comet Nishimura being hit by a powerful solar storm, causing its tail to be temporarily blown away. The green comet, discovered by amateur astronomer Hideo Nishimura, survived a close encounter with the sun and has a highly elliptical orbit that brings it into the inner solar system every 430 years. Despite being bombarded by the sun, the comet remains on its original trajectory and may be visible again in the future.