A newly discovered green comet will on Wednesday make its closest approach to the earth for the first time in 50,000 years.
Astronomers say the icy celestial object was last visible in the night sky during the Stone Age.
Discovered on March 2, 2022, by astronomers when it was inside the orbit of Jupiter, the comet made its closest approach to the sun on Jan. 12, according to NASA. Photographs captured by astronomers show a distinct green hue around the body of the comet.
When to see it?
The icy celestial body – called C/2022 E3 (ZTF) by Nasa – has been visible in the Northern Hemisphere through binoculars for the past few weeks, but it will make its closest pass by Earth between Feb. 1 and Feb. 2, around 42 million Km to 44 million Km (26 million miles to 27 million miles) away.
“Comets are notoriously unpredictable, but if this one continues its current trend in brightness, it’ll be easy to spot,” Nasa said on its blog earlier this month. “It’s just possible it could become visible to the unaided eye under dark skies.”
Who can see it?
Those living north of the equator are optimal for viewing the comet on early morning skies, after the moon has set after midnight. The space object will be more difficult to see for those in the Southern Hemisphere.
What would it look like?
Comets reflect different colors of light due to their chemical compositions and positions in orbit. As the icy celestial body nears Earth, observers will be able to spot it as a faint green smudge near the bright star Polaris, also called the North Star. But those expecting a brilliant streak of emerald in the sky will be disappointed. Its brightness is right at the threshold of what is visible to the naked eye.
Even during its closest approach, the comet will still be more than 100 times the moon’s distance away from Earth.
How you distinguish a comet from stars?
The comet can be distinguished from stars by its streaking tails of dust and energized particles, as well as the glowing green coma surrounding it. The coma is an envelope around a comet formed as a result of the sublimation of ice as it passes close to the sun. This causes the comet to look fuzzy when observed through telescopes.
To find it, first search for the pole star looking directly in the north and then locate a star that hangs distinctly to the right of the pole star. The pole star is always in the same place in the sky so it should not be hard to locate for enthusiasts.