A comet not seen since Neanderthals walked the Earth is set to make a return trip, and astronomers have shared the first detailed image of the ‘cosmic snowball’.
Officially known as C/2022 E3 (ZTF), the comet orbits the Sun every 50,000 years and is expected to approach our planet on February 1, 2023.
E3 was detected in March, but scientists recently took the first detailed image revealing a brighter greenish coma with a yellow dust tail.
While the comet is too faint to see without a telescope, it should be visible to the unaided eye when it’s about 26 million miles away.
E3 was detected in March, but scientists recently took the first detailed image revealing a brighter greenish coma with a yellow dust tail.
In early March, astronomers discovered comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) using the Wide Field Survey Camera at the Zwicky Transit Facility.
Since then, the new long-period comet has brightened significantly and is now crossing the northern constellation Corona Borealis in the pre-dawn sky.
The comet is currently 117 million miles from Earth and is scheduled to reach the Sun on January 1, orbiting it and reaching its closest point to our planet.
E3 will be the first comet seen with the naked eye by NEOWISE in July 2020.
However, NEOWISE has left a long, fuzzy tail and E3 will likely appear as a gray streak in the night sky.
E3 should be visible by January 26, but peaks on February 1.
This comet isn’t the only cosmic show scheduled for 2023, as it will start the year with the annual Quadruple meteor shower and end with the impressive Geminids meteor shower in December.
The Quadrantid is one of the most spectacular meteor showers of the year, and you don’t need specialized equipment to see it.
While the meteor shower technically started today, it will peak on the night of Jan. 3 and the morning of Jan. 4.
It’s an above-average shower, usually seeing 40 meteors pass by in an hour.
However, at the extremes, up to 200 bright stars can be seen per hour, but this depends on ideal conditions and ideal location on Earth.
And as 2023 draws to a close, the Geminids meteor shower will light up the sky on December 13-14.
The comet is currently 117 million miles from Earth and is scheduled to reach the Sun on January 1, orbiting it and reaching its closest point to our planet.
This comet isn’t the only cosmic show scheduled for 2023, as it will start the year with the annual Quadruple meteor shower and end with the impressive Geminids meteor shower (pictured) in December.
Meteorites are mostly white but can be yellow, green, red or blue.
While most meteor showers are caused by comets, the Geminids meteor shower is unique in that the shower is produced as Earth passes through a trail of debris generated by an asteroid known as 3200 Phaethon.
Head to a dark area, away from light pollution, and give your eyes at least 30 minutes to adjust to the night sky.
Geminids meteor showers were first reported in 1862, but it wasn’t until 1983 that scientists pinpointed the source of 3200 Phaethon.
They are called Geminids because as the Earth passes through the debris, it illuminates the star Castor in the constellation Gemini.
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