Halley’s Comet zooms by Earth regularly, and so it has a chance a tiny one of colliding with our planet. During a flyby, the famous chunk of ice is easy to spot, even without a telescope. For example, there are reports from 240 B.C., when ancient Chinese stargazers saw it without any problem.
Here’s a timeline that shows some of the world changing events that happened between Halley’s visits. As you will see, Halley doesn’t appear at exactly even intervals. By computing the averages time between visits what year would you except the comet to turn up next?
1338- Hundred Years war starts between England and France on 1301 Visit.
1405- Chinese Sailors explore the Indian Ocean on 1378 Visit.
1492- Columbus sets sail to find a route to Asia through the Pacific.
on 1456 visit.
1910- World War I begins on 1910 visit.
1986- First Official U.S. observation of Martin Luther king Jr. Day, in honor of slain civil rights leader, space shuttle Challenger explodes