The astronomical objects in the Solar System have long been a subject of fascination for people of various cultures. Over the centuries they saw them not only as mysterious formations but also as phenomena that heralded disastrous events to come. This led to comets being called messengers of death and a threat to the Universe.
The different cultures felt terror and awe at the same time toward them. They saw a variety of images in comets. Some believed that a comet was a woman with long hair, symbolizing death. Other saw a sword in the astronomical object, a harbinger of death and disasters. These beliefs were not happenstance, they were influenced by unfortunate events in history.
For example, Aristotle attributed the powerful earthquake in Achaea to a comet in 373-372 BC. It was also linked with plagues, floods and other disasters. It was called the harbinger of storms and cold.
Some time around the 6th century AD, a part of the now well-familiar Halley's Comet, which passes by our planet every once and a while, burned up in our atmosphere. This, in turn, led to a drastic change in temperature. Drought occurred due to the drop in temperature, causing famine.
Once the comet blew up, its dust drifted all across Earth's atmosphere, blocking out the Sun. What followed was a series of catastrophes. This led to people from Antiquity believing that a comet foreshadowed disasters, state scientists from Columbia University.
Comets have long been a part of our history. Woody Sullivan from the University of Washington also believes that their appearance was thought to be a bad omen.
According to the Romans, the death of Julius Caesar was foretold by a comet, becoming a reason for them to believe in his divinity. Another comet, they thought, caused the tremendous bloodshed during a battle between Pompey and Caesar.
Comets continued to sow fear later on in history. In England, Halley's Comet was accused of causing the plague epidemic, as well as bringing to pass other horrible events. During the Middle Ages, its appearance was linked to the expansion of the Ottoman Empire which spread fear among many peoples. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, fear related to Halley's Comet increased.
Among the other notorious comets is Hale–Bopp. Since its discovery in 1995, rumor spread that there was a UFO following it. A religious group was then formed in the US state of California, claiming that this comet would also herald in the end of the world. When the object came closer in 1997, nearly 40 people put an end to their lives.
However, not all societies were convinced in the evils of comets. During the 17th century, Europeans believed that comets affected time and contributed to a better quality wine.
