For centuries astronomers have chased comets across the skies, looking for clues as to the origins of our solar system. Tugged from deep-space by the gravity of the sun, they shed dust and gas as they warm, revealing some of their secrets within.<br /><br />Beguiling and bewildering in equal measure these celestial visitors continue to hold the fascination of today's stargazers.<br /><br />In this edition of Space we talk to some top European scientists striving to unravel the mysteries of comets.<br /><br />As a starting point Hermann Böhnhardt, Senior Research Scientist, at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research put comets into perspective: "A comet is a piece of rock and ice, mixed together, roughly to imagine, something like Mont Blanc, or one of the larger mountains in the Alps - that is the size of a comet."<br /><br />Frozen within this rocky mass are secrets about our own origins, according to Gerhard Schwehm, Cometary Scientist at the European Space Agency:<br /><br />"Comets are interesting for a lot of reasons and one reason we are looking- and it's the most fascinating reason- is 'have comets played a role to bring life onto Earth'?"
