Why in the News?

The first Indian inscriptional reference to Halley’s Comet has been discovered on a copper plate dated 1456 CE, from the Vijayanagar Period.

What does the inscription say?

The inscription was found on a copper plate dated June 28, 1456 CE, during the Vijayanagar Empire, preserved at the Sri Mallikarjunaswamy temple in Srisailam, Andhra Pradesh.
Written in Sanskrit using the Nagari script, it describes the sighting of a comet (dhūmaketu) and a meteor shower, which coincide with the documented appearance of Halley’s Comet that year.
The inscription records a village grant made by King Mallikarjuna of Vijayanagar to a Vedic scholar named Limgaṇarya from Kaḍiyalapura (likely present-day Kaḍiyapulanka, Kadapa district).
The grant’s purpose is explicitly mentioned: “to mitigate the great calamity believed to arise due to the appearance of a comet and meteor shower”—a reference to traditional beliefs of such celestial events being inauspicious.
The Sanskrit phrase “Prakāśyāya mahōtpāta śāntyartham dattavān vibhuḥ” translates to “this grant was made in order to pacify the calamities that may arise due to the illuminating comets and meteor shower upon the king and his kingdom.”
Though dhūmaketus (comets) are referenced in ancient Indian astronomical texts, this is the earliest inscriptional record linking a comet to a specific historical date and royal response.

Periodicity: It is one of the most famous periodic comets, visible from Earth approximately once every 76 years.
Behind its name: It is named after the English astronomer Edmond Halley, who correctly predicted its return in 1758 using Newton’s laws of motion.
Early observations: The comet has been recorded by observers around the world for over 2,000 years, including in Babylonian, Chinese, and mediaeval European sources.
Latest appearance: Halley’s Comet last appeared in 1986 and is expected to return in 2061.
Visibility: It is visible to the naked eye and appears as a bright streak of light with a glowing tail, caused by solar radiation vaporising its icy surface.
Significance: Its 1456 CE appearance was especially bright and visible across Europe and Asia, and now, for the first time, it has been identified in an Indian epigraphical record.

[UPSC 2011] What is the difference between asteroids and comets?

1. Asteroids are small rocky planetoids, while comets are formed of frozen gases held together by rocky and metallic material.

2. Asteroids are found mostly between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars, while comets are found mostly between Venus and Mercury.

3. Comets show a perceptible glowing tail, while asteroids do not.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Options: (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 1 and 3 only* (c) 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3