Halley's Comet
|
Stars with trains of fire. For King Harold and the Saxons, the appearance of a comet in 1066 was a portent of doom; for Duke William and the Normans, the same comet was a blessing from heaven. Later that year, William's army defeated Harold's forces at the Battle of Hastings. William's wife, Queen Matilda, commissioned this tapestry, the famous Bayeux Tapestry, to commemorate her husband's victory. Today we know that the comet was Halley's comet on one of its recurring visits.
|
|
Halley's comet, 1910, photographed by the Southern Station of Lick Observatory.
|
|
Halley, 1986, photographed by the 1.2-meter UK Schmidt in Coonabarabran, New South Wales, Australia.
|
|
