A comet develops its bright coma and tails as sunlight warms volatile material near the Sun. Follow the dust and ionized gas to see why the two tails behave differently and point in different directions. Inside this episode: - The nucleus - The coma - Two main tails - Sunlight pushes dust - The solar wind shapes the ion tail Sources include NASA, Comet Facts and NASA, Basics of Space Flight. This episode is a researched narrative summary. Historical records may be incomplete, translated differently, or interpreted differently by scholars. We distinguish documented facts, estimates, disputed interpretations, and later stories where material. Corrections are logged and incorporated into future editions. Follow Solar System Field Notes for more researched stories about the evidence that reveals our solar system.