TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is reported to be passing near Earth in early February 2023. This rare celestial body is estimated to have a period of 50 thousand years.
“This comet includes a long period, so one of its features is the rare opportunity if we can observe it,” said the researcher and spokesperson. Bosscha ObservatoryYatny Yulianti, Monday, January 16, 2023.
According to him, the bright blue and green comet, as well as the gold tail, is thought to have approached Earth the last time Neanderthals roamed the planet. Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) discovered by the Zwicky Transient Facility, it has reached its closest approach to the Sun on January 12, 2023 and will reach its closest point to Earth on February 1, 2023.
Yatny said the comet would appear in the constellation Bootes. From the territory of Indonesia, the constellation Bootes starts rising at midnight during January until early February 2023. On January 16, for example, the comet appears at 02.15 WIB when observed from Lembang. “Seeing its current brilliance, comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) can be seen with the help of small binoculars,” he said.
Meanwhile, according to Andi Princeg, researcher at the Space Research Center for the Aviation and Space Research Organization of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, BRIN, on the research center’s website, this comet is expected to pass close to Earth on February 2 at 00.32 WIB. The comet is 42,472,000 kilometers from Earth.
There is a possibility, he said, that this comet did not come from the Oort cloud, which is a repository for comets and asteroids, but from another solar system or an interstellar comet.
When passing near the earth, this comet can be seen throughout Indonesia from February 1 at 18.30 to February 2 at 02.30 local time. This comet, according to him, can be observed without using optical aids for remote and rural areas until February 13, from 18:30 to 01:00 local time from north to west near the constellation Taurus.
The comet culminates in the north at 19.00 local time with a height of 64.2 degrees for DKI Jakarta and its surroundings. Conditions for the situation of the place for observation, namely free from light pollution, field of view free from obstructions, and the weather is quite sunny.
Baca:
After 50,000 Years, Comet C/2022 E3 Returns to Earth, Can Be Observed Thursday
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