The story is already familiar from the movie Armageddon, but unfortunately this is not a Hollywood fairy tale, but the real world!
In recent weeks, the third explosion has shaken the huge cauldron, which is heading towards Earth, reports the LADbible.
The asteroid, which is about three times the size of Mount Everest, was first spotted in 1812. But it will reach its closest point to our planet in June next year, so now it is really starting to become the center of interest.
Officially known as 12P/Pons-Brooks, the space rock is also referred to as a “cold volcano” because of its tendency to eject ice and gas as it travels through space.
And it’s this activity that has given it the nickname “devil” as material flies out during explosions, making it look like a devil’s horn. There have been three such “outbreaks” in recent weeks, and who knows where they will end.
Dr. Theodore Kareta, principal investigator at the Lowell Observatory in Arizona, said: “Because of the eruptions, this object is quite dim, so we can only really see it with large, professional telescopes.”
“There aren’t very many comets that have eruptions. In this case, the brightness suddenly increases and becomes strong. Pons-Brooks seems to be really active,” he added.
While the phrase “Earthbound comet” is enough to strike fear into most of us, experts say this meteorite actually poses no threat to us.
It will be worth looking up at the sky
And Dr. Eliot Herman, a retired University of Arizona professor and amateur astronomer, went so far as to say that this might be a good time to take a look at an unusual and interesting celestial body. After all, when it comes close to Earth next year, it should be visible with binoculars or even with the naked eye, depending on weather conditions and cloud cover.
As he said: “People have been looking up at the sky since the beginning of the world. And being fascinated by what is happening above us goes back long before civilization.”
He added: “Celestial events touch everyone, I think in a very historic way. The universe is a big place and there are countless wonderful things happening around us. It’s worth going out, just staring and realizing. “
12P/Pons-Brooks passes Earth every 71 years – meaning no one has seen it since the 1950s.
Our cover image is an illustration, source: Needpix.
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2023-11-11 06:04:30
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