Comet, Queensland

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title: "Comet, Queensland" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["towns-in-queensland", "central-highlands-region", "localities-in-queensland"] topic_path: "general/towns-in-queensland" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comet,_Queensland" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox Australian place"]

Field	Value
type	town
name	Comet
state	qld
image	Grazing Land Near Comet - panoramio (1).jpg
caption	Grazing land west of the town of Comet, 2013
coordinates
pop	360
pop_year
pop_footnotes
postcode	4702
area	1756.8
timezone	AEST
utc	+10:00
dist1	41.0
dir1	ESE
location1	Emerald
dist2	230
dir2	W
location2	Rockhampton
dist3	841
dir3	NW
location3	Brisbane
lga	Central Highlands Region
stategov	Gregory
fedgov	Flynn
near-n	Mackenzie River
near-ne	Blackwater
near-e	Stewarton
near-se	Togara
near-s	Arcturus
near-sw	Gindie
near-w	Emerald
near-nw	Wyuna
::

Geography

Comet is the oldest town in the Emerald area, established at the confluence of the Comet River with the Nogoa River.

The town is located on the Capricorn Highway, 859 km north west of the state capital, Brisbane.

The Central Western railway line enters the locality from the east (Blackwater / Stewarton), passes through the town, and exits to the west (Emerald). No passenger services stop at the local stations, which, with the exception of that at Yamala, whose use is being expanded as the CQ Inland Port, are not in use:

Yamala railway station ()
Comet railway station, ()
Tolmies railway station ()
Burngrove railway station ()

Ensham railway station () is in the north of the locality on the Blackwater railway system. It provides rail services to the Ensham coal mines operated by Idemitsu Australia.

The locality has a number of neighbourhoods (from north to south):

Yamala ()
Leichhardt Tree ()
Junction () Mount Crocker is a mountain () in the east of the locality, rising to 248 m above sea level.

The area around Comet supports cotton and grain production as well as cattle, both grazing and in feedlots.

History

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/StateLibQld_1_252786_Early_view_of_Comet,_ca._1878.jpg" caption="Township, circa 1878]]Originally called Cometville, the town takes its name from the Comet River, named by explorer [[Ludwig Leichhardt]], who made observations of Comet Wilmot (C/1844 Y2) in the area on 29 December 1844.{{cite book"] ::

| author = John Dunmore Lang | title = Cooksland in north-eastern Australia: the future cottonfield of Great Britain: its characteristics and capabilities for European colonization. With a disquisition on the origin, manners, and customs of the aborigines | year = 1847|page=315 | publisher = Longman, Brown, Green and Longmans

Comet Post Office opened on 5 September 1877.

Cometville State School opened on 23 October 1877. In 1912, it was renamed Comet State School in 1912.

On 19 March 1931, the town's name was changed from Cometville to Comet.

Demographics

In the , the locality of Comet had a population of 233 people.{{Census 2006 AUS |id=SSC35637|name=Comet (Emerald Shire) (State Suburb)|accessdate=7 May 2011|quick=on}}

In the , the locality of Comet had a population of 498 people.

In the , the locality of Comet had a population of 360 people.

Education

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/62/Comet_State_School_2021.jpg" caption="Comet State School, 2021"] ::

Comet State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls off the Capricorn Highway (). In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 28 students with 5 teachers (3 full-time equivalent) and 4 non-teaching staff (2 full-time equivalent). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 25 students with 5 teachers (3 full-time equivalent) and 5 non-teaching staff (2 full-time equivalent).

There are no secondary schools in Comet. The nearest government secondary school is Emerald State High School in neighbouring Emerald, situated 41 kilometres (25 miles) west of Comet.

Attractions

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/StateLibQld_2_388261_Leichhardt_Tree_with_the_impression_L_23_degree_57,_Comet_River,_1927.jpg" caption="publisher=[[Tourism Queensland]]}}"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/Comet_free_library.jpg" caption="Comet Free Library 2021"] ::

There is a walking trail through the town visiting points of historic interest.

References

{{cite QPN. 7828. Comet. town in Central Highlands Region
{{cite QPN. 46938. Comet. locality in Central Highlands Region
"Townships". Emerald Shire Council.
(2 October 2020). "Railway stations and sidings - Queensland". [[Queensland Government]].
{{cite QPN. 38379. Yamala. locality unbounded in Central Highlands Regional
{{cite QPN. 19179. Leichhardt Tree. locality unbounded in Central Highlands Regional
{{cite QPN. 17465. Junction. locality unbounded in Central Highlands Regional
(12 November 2020). "Mountain peaks and capes - Queensland". [[Queensland Government]].
{{cite QPN. 8764. Mount Crocker. mountain in Central Highlands Regional
Bond, G. P.. (1850). "On the great comet of 1844-45". [[Astronomical Journal]].
Phoenix Auctions History. "Post Office List". Phoenix Auctions.
"Queensland schools past and present". [[Queensland Family History Society]].
{{Census 2016 AUS
{{Census 2021 AUS
(9 July 2018). "State and non-state school details". [[Queensland Government]].
"ACARA School Profile 2017".
"ACARA School Profile 2018". [[Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority]].
{{Queensland Globe
"Comet". [[Tourism Queensland]].
"Comet".

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