Cometary Rotation: an Overview

I discuss our current understanding of the spin states of cometary nuclei. Cometary spin influences the temporal and spatial patterns of outgassing from the nucleus (through diurnal and seasonal effects) and is in turn influenced by outgassing-driven torques. The current challenge to cometary astronomers is to quantify the interactions between the spin, the outgassing, and the resultant torques on the nucleus, and to understand the role of rotation in determining the basic physical properties of the nucleus. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.