The solar wind interaction with comets: A post encounter view

Abstract

The recent spacecraft encounters with comets Giacobini-Zinner and Halley have led to an enormous increase in our knowledge of comets, including their dust, neutral gas, plasma, and magnetic field environments. The latter has in turn led to better understanding of the nature of the solar wind interaction with the well developed atmosphere of a comet. The post-encounter understanding of this interaction is reviewed, underscoring the differences with pre-encounter reasoning. The problems outstanding in this area are emphasized.