Do comets have satellites?

The recent evidence that many minor planets may have satellites, together with recently iscovered physical, chemical, and lightcurve similarities between minor planets and comets, lead naturally to the question, “Might comets have satellites also?” This paper explores several puzzling features of comets which do not fit easily into conventional cometary models, but which can be satisfactorily explained if it is assumed that comets have a full range of gravitationally bound masses, from dust size to the size of the nucleus, in orbit around the principal nucleus. This discussion also implies a higher probability of destruction of a spacecraft near a comet than is usually assumed.