Comets of this type aren't everyday sightings. The opportunity to observe objects that might have orbital periods measured in thousands of years is fleeting. So when Comet Lemmon recently appeared in the night sky, eager skywatchers looked up to observe it move across the heavens.

What is it?

Comet Lemmon, or C/2025 A6, was discovered by the Arizona-based Mount Lemmon Survey, which observed it as an almost asteroid‐like object; it was later re-classified as a comet once coma and tail features became evident.

Comets are often described as "dirty snowballs" — icy bodies laced with dust and rock — from the fringes of the solar system. When they approach the sun, they heat up, releasing gas and dust that form the coma (the glowing cloud around the nucleus) and the tail(s) that stream away f

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