Biela's Comet in February 1846, soon after it split into two pieces
Biela's Comet or Comet Biela (official designation: 3D/Biela) was a periodic comet first recorded in 1772 by Montaigne and Messier and finally identified as periodic in 1826 by Wilhelm von Biela. It was seen to split in two and has not been seen since 1852. It is thought to have been destroyed, although remnants appeared to have survived for some time as a meteor shower, the Andromedids.
Images for kids
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The two components of Biela in 1852, as drawn by Secchi.
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The Andromedid or Bielid meteors as seen on the night of November 27, 1872.
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Biela's Comet was the subject of several panics over close approaches to Earth. An 1877 newspaper illustration from Chile, captioned "inevitable impact of the Earth with Comet Biela"