Comet C/2014 Q2. Comets are bodies of ice and dust that enter the inner solar system from the outer solar system. As they approach the Sun, the heat boils the ice, producing a coma around the nucleus, along with a tail stretching out behind it. This comet was discovered by Terry Lovejoy in 2014. It has an orbital period of many thousands of years. It reached perihelion (closest approach to the Sun) on 30 January 2015. This image was obtained on 18 January 2015.