Strange comet flies past the Sun

Washington: NASA's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) along with the European Space Agency (ESA) have captured an unusual comet that skimmed past the Sun. "There is a half decent chance that ground observers might be able to detect it in the coming weeks," said Karl Battams, scientist from Washington, Dc.

This comet was interesting for two reasons. First it is called a non-group comet, means it is not part of any known family of comets. The second reason it is interesting is because the vast majority of comets that come close enough to the Sun to be seen by SOHO do not survive the trip. Known as sungrazers, these comets usually evaporate in the intense sunlight.