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Green comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will be closest to Earth on Feb. 1
On Wednesday (Feb. 1) a comet that has not visited the Earth since the last Ice Age and the time of the Neanderthals will make its closest approach to our planet, or perigee.
Excitingly, the comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF), which last passed through the inner solar system around 50,000 years ago, will be at its brightest during this time and may even be visible to the naked eye under the right conditions. The comet should be observable for days as it approaches our planet and then recedes on its way to the outer solar system.
During the comet’s perigee, it will come to within a distance of around 26 million miles (42 million kilometers) from our planet, which is equivalent to about 28% of the distance between Earth and the sun. If you’ve been waiting to get a look at C/2022 E3 (ZTF) before it speeds away, now is your best chance.
Related: How to see the green comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) visible in the night sky now as it approaches Earth
According to In-the-Sky, (opens in new tab) from New York City C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is circumpolar, meaning it is permanently above the horizon, and should therefore be visible for most of the night. It will be visible in the Camelopardalis constellation while at perigee, a large but faint area of sky devoid of bright stars and located close to the north celestial pole.
The comet will become visible at around 6:49 p.m. EST (2349 GMT) on Wednesday (Feb. 1) when it will be 49 degrees over the northern horizon. C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will climb to its highest point in the sky, 58 degrees over the northern horizon, at around 9:46 p.m. EST (0246 GMT). Following this it will disappear in the dawn light at around 5:57 a.m. EST (1057 GMT) on Feb. 2 while at around 30 degrees over the horizon to the north.
The comet will remain visible through early February, and will finally become visible to observers in the southern horizon this month. C/2022 E3 (ZTF) may be visible to the naked eye but should be easier to spot with binoculars or a telescope. The easiest times to spot it may be on Sunday (Feb. 5) when the comet is next to the bright star Capella in the Auriga constellation, or between Feb. 9 and Feb. 13 when it will shine near Mars in the Taurus constellation.
If you’re hoping to observe C/2022 E3 (ZTF), our guides for the best telescopes and best binoculars are a great place to start. If you’re looking to snap photos of the night sky, check out our guide on how to photograph the moon, as well our best cameras for astrophotography and best lenses for astrophotography.
C/2022 E3 (ZTF) made its close approach to the sun, its perihelion, on Jan. 12 when it passed to within 100 million miles (160 million kilometers) of our star before heading towards Earth.
The orbital period of C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is 50,000 years according to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (NASA JPL) (opens in new tab), meaning the last time it came so close to the Earth or the sun our planet was in the midst of the last glacial period or “ice age” and Neanderthals still shared the planet with our early ancestors, the first homo sapiens.
C/2022 E3 (ZTF) was first identified in March 2022 by the wide-field survey camera at the Zwicky Transient Facility inside the orbit of Jupiter. Initially, astronomers suspected that it was an asteroid, but C/2022 E3 (ZTF) soon began to brighten as it approached the sun.
This is a behavior displayed by comets as they approach the sun and are heated by radiation from our star, with the material at their surface transforming from solid ice to gas in a process called sublimation. This pointed to the true nature of C/2022 E3 (ZTF) and hinted at its potential visibility over Earth.
Editor’s Note: If you snap the comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF), and would like to share it with Space.com’s readers, send your photo(s), comments, and your name and location to spacephotos@space.com.
Rare Green Comet To Make Closest Approach To Earth This Week
Comets are cosmic snowballs made of frozen gases
A rare green comet is due to make its closest pass by Earth. The comet named C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will be visible this week for people in the Southern Hemisphere if the skies are clear. The comet is streaking back our way after almost 50,000 years.
According to NASA, the comet visited Earth during Neanderthal times. It will come within 26 million miles (42 million kilometres) of Earth on Wednesday before speeding away again, unlikely to return for millions of years.
The comet was first spotted in March last year by astronomers through the wide-field survey camera at the Zwicky Transient Facility. It was in Jupiter’s orbit at the time and has grown brighter since then.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration says that Neanderthal Comet will shift to the northwest on the horizon throughout January and it will make its closest pass of Earth between February 1 and February 2.
“Comets are notoriously unpredictable, but if this one continues its current trend in brightness, it’ll be easy to spot with binoculars, and it’s just possible it could become visible to the unaided eye under dark skies,” NASA wrote in its “What’s Up” blog.
Comets are cosmic snowballs made of frozen gases, rocks, and dust that orbit the Sun. While these celestial bodies are small in size when frozen, they get heated upon coming closer to the Sun and release gases and dust into a large glowing head, which is bigger than most planets.
According to Space.com, the orbital period of the comet was determined to be around 50,000 years. This means that it will be making its first approach to Earth in 50,000 years next month.
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Asteroid 2023 BU about to pass Earth in one of closest ever encounters | Asteroids
An asteroid the size of a delivery truck will pass Earth in one of the closest such encounters ever recorded – coming within a tenth of the distance of most communication satellites’ orbit.
Nasa said the newly discovered asteroid would pass 2,200 miles (3,600km) above the southern tip of South America at 7.27pm US eastern time on Thursday (12.27am GMT on Friday).
Nasa said it would be a near miss with no chance of hitting Earth. Even if it came a lot closer, scientists said most of it would burn up in the atmosphere, with bigger pieces possibly falling as meteorites.
Nasa’s impact hazard assessment system, called Scout, quickly ruled out a strike, said its developer, Davide Farnocchia, an engineer at the agency’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
“But despite the very few observations, it was nonetheless able to predict that the asteroid would make an extraordinarily close approach with Earth,” Farnocchia said. “In fact, this is one of the closest approaches by a known near-Earth object ever recorded.”
Discovered on Saturday, the asteroid known as 2023 BU is believed to be between 11ft (3.5m) and 28ft (8.5m) across.
It was first spotted by the same amateur astronomer in Crimea, Gennady Borisov, who discovered an interstellar comet in 2019. Within a few days, dozens of observations were made by astronomers around the world, allowing them to refine the asteroid’s path.
That path will be altered by drastically by Earth’s gravity as it passes. Instead of circling the sun every 359 days, it will move into an oval orbit lasting 425 days, according to Nasa.
With Associated Press
Asteroid 2023 BU about to pass Earth in one of closest ever encounters | Asteroids
An asteroid the size of a delivery truck will pass Earth in one of the closest such encounters ever recorded – coming within a tenth of the distance of most communication satellites’ orbit.
Nasa said the newly discovered asteroid would pass 2,200 miles (3,600km) above the southern tip of South America at 7.27pm US eastern time on Thursday (12.27am GMT on Friday).
Nasa said it would be a near miss with no chance of hitting Earth. Even if it came a lot closer, scientists said most of it would burn up in the atmosphere, with bigger pieces possibly falling as meteorites.
Nasa’s impact hazard assessment system, called Scout, quickly ruled out a strike, said its developer, Davide Farnocchia, an engineer at the agency’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
“But despite the very few observations, it was nonetheless able to predict that the asteroid would make an extraordinarily close approach with Earth,” Farnocchia said. “In fact, this is one of the closest approaches by a known near-Earth object ever recorded.”
Discovered on Saturday, the asteroid known as 2023 BU is believed to be between 11ft (3.5m) and 28ft (8.5m) across.
It was first spotted by the same amateur astronomer in Crimea, Gennady Borisov, who discovered an interstellar comet in 2019. Within a few days, dozens of observations were made by astronomers around the world, allowing them to refine the asteroid’s path.
That path will be altered by drastically by Earth’s gravity as it passes. Instead of circling the sun every 359 days, it will move into an oval orbit lasting 425 days, according to Nasa.
With Associated Press
earth: New Moon will be the closest to Earth ‘Tonight’; Heavenly miracle to happen after 993 years
The New Moon will be in the closest proximity to Earth on January 21, 2023, since the Middle Ages. Reportedly, this astronomical event is occurring for the first time in 993 years and is most likely to reoccur after another 345 years.
Due to its closeness to the Earth, the New Moon will be in its biggest appearance in the sky since December 3, 1030, CE. ‘Timeanddate.com’ has revealed the information after a review from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA. Today, the moon will be 356,568 kilometres or 221,561 miles from Earth. Those who will miss the incident today will have to wait till January 20, 2368, to experience it.
The Moon’s orbit across the Earth is far from the shape of a perfect circle. In reality, it is elliptical in shape and represents a barely stretched circle. Because of its shape, the distance between the Moon and Earth keeps changing over a month. The point of the Moon’s orbit closest to Earth is called ‘perigee,’ while the point farthest from the planet is known as ‘apogee.’ The longest Earth-to-Moon distance is witnessed when the Earth is in the closest proximity to the Sun. This happened on January 4. Nearly 2000 years ago, three New Moons occurred at distances lower than 356,570 KM.
Venus and Saturn will be aligned on the day following the New Moon. The New Moon today holds great importance as it signifies the start of the Chinese Lunar New Year, also known as the ‘Spring Competition.’ According to the Chinese calendar, this year is called the ‘Year of the Rabbit.’ The Chinese calendar integrates the lunar and photovoltaic methodologies to ascertain dates. The total distance between the Moon and Earth through such incidents is crucial. On April 20, the world will witness a complete photo voltaic eclipse in Australia, Timor Leste, and West Papua. Also, in October, an annular photovoltaic eclipse will be seen in the US, Mexico, and South America.
FAQ
Q1. What is the distance between Earth and Sun?
Ans. The total distance between Earth and Sun is 147.21M km.
Q2. Which is the green planet?
Ans. Uranus is known as the green planet.
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How to watch the ‘Green Comet’ as it makes closest approach in 50K years
A green comet shooting through the morning skies is scheduled to make its closest approach to Earth at the beginning of next month.
Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) was first spotted in March of last year, when it was already inside Jupiter’s orbit. It’s reportedly making its closest approach in 50,000 years.
NASA has said that it will make its closest approach to our planet on Feb. 2.
If this comet continues its current trend in brightness, it should be easily visible with a small telescope or binoculars.
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Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) was discovered by astronomers using the wide-field survey camera at the Zwicky Transient Facility.
(Dan Bartlett)
The agency noted that it’s “just possible” it could become visible to the unaided eye under dark skies.
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Exterior view of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory on February 28, 2018, in Pasadena, California.
((Photo by RB/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images via Getty Images))
“If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere, use binoculars or a small telescope to find Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF), which has been passing through the morning skies all month,” NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory tweeted Friday.
It will become visible in the Southern Hemisphere in early February.
On a voyage through the inner Solar System, comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will be at perigee, its closest to our planet, on Feb. 2.
(Dan Bartlett)
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Skywatchers are advised to check apps for the comet’s position.
On Jan. 21, the comet will reportedly be close to the constellation Draco, according to the New York Times.
The new moon is the closest in nearly 1,000 years tonight
Tonight’s new moon may be invisible, but that doesn’t make it any less significant.
It’s not often we get excited about a new moon from a skywatching perspective, given that you can’t see anything from the vantage point of Earth. (New moons occur when the illuminated half of the moon is facing away from us, leaving us seeing nothing but darkness.) But tonight’s new moon is a particularly special one.
It’s the closest new moon to Earth since the year 1030. At 3:54 p.m. EST (2054 GMT), the moon will be exactly 221,561 miles (356,568 km) away from our planet, according to Timeanddate.com (opens in new tab), which sifted through data from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to determine the distances of every Earth-moon distance for hundreds of years.
Related: What is the moon phase today? Lunar phases 2023
Because the moon’s orbit is not perfectly circular, but elliptical, its distance from Earth changes all the time. The next time the new moon will be this close will be on Jan. 20, 2368 — and that moon will actually be 6 miles (9 km) closer than this one. By comparison, the moon’s average distance is 238,855 miles (384,400 km) away.
Now if this moon were a full moon, we’d consider it a supermoon, which occurs when the moon is near perigee, or its closest point to Earth during its orbit, and therefore appears bigger and brighter in the sky. But since it’s a new moon, the skies will be totally dark. But the tides will still be impacted by this “invisible” supermoon — Earth will experience a king tide, or an especially high tide, sometime around this date.
But this moon is special for another reason; it marks the Lunar New Year, a major festival celebrated across Asia, particularly in China. This year is the year of the rabbit, per the Chinese zodiac, a 12-year cycle during which each year is represented by a different animal. All over Asia and in Asian communities around the world, friends and family will gather over good food and good laughs, with plenty of good luck to go around.
If you don’t have all the gear you need to see the night sky up close during the new moon, our guides on the best telescopes and best binoculars are a great place to begin. If you’re looking to take the best photos you can of the night sky, check out our guides on the best cameras for astrophotography and best lenses for astrophotography.
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See a rare green comet closest to the sun on Jan. 12 in livestream
A comet that hasn’t visited Earth or the inner solar system since the last ice age will reach its closest point to the sun tonight (Jan. 12) and you can watch it live online in a free webcast.
The comet, designated C/2022 E3 (ZTF), will come to within around 100 million miles (160 million kilometers) of the sun as it reaches a closest point, called perihelion. The comet will then move towards Earth making its closest approach to our planet, its perigee, on Feb. 2 when it will whip past us at a distance of 26 million miles (42 million kilometers).
Though it won’t be visible to the naked eye during its close approach to the sun, the comet should be observable with binoculars. If C/2022 E3 (ZTF) continues to brighten the way it currently is, it could eventually be possible to spot it in the night sky with the naked eye. Whether or not you’ll be able to see it on your own, The Virtual Telescope Project will host a free livestream of the comet (opens in new tab) beginning at 11 p.m. EST on Jan. 12 (0400 GMT on Jan. 13). You can watch the live webcast courtesy of the project’s website (opens in new tab) or on its YouTube channel (opens in new tab). It will appear on this page at start time, as well.
Related: Amazing photos of gorgeously green Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF)
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Labs (NASA JPL) gives the period of this comet as 50,000 years. This means the last time the orbit of C/2022 E3 (ZTF) brought it so close to the Earth, our planet was in the midst of the last glacial period or “ice age” and early Homo sapiens and Neanderthals still shared the planet.
According to In the Sky (opens in new tab) from New York City C/2022 E3 (ZTF) at perihelion will be visible in the dawn sky, rising at 11:18 p.m. EST (0418 GMT) and reaching an altitude of 64° over the eastern horizon. The comet will fade from view as dawn breaks around 6:07 a.m. EST (1107 GMT).
C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will eventually reach its brightest on Feb. 2 when it will be at its closest to Earth, visible in the constellation Camelopardalis.
The comet was first identified in March 2022 by the wide-field survey camera at the Zwicky Transient Facility and was initially believed to be an asteroid. It was the rapid brightening of C/2022 E3 (ZTF) as it moved from the inner orbit of Jupiter that indicated it true cometary nature.
The brightening of comets can be difficult to predict, but even if C/2022 E3 (ZTF) doesn’t brighten enough to become visible with the naked eye, it will still be observable during January and early February with binoculars and small telescopes.
According to NASA (opens in new tab) observers in the Northern Hemisphere should be able to find C/2022 E3 (ZTF) in the morning sky, as it moves to the northwest throughout January. The comet will become visible for skywatchers in the Southern Hemisphere in early February 2023.
The new moon phase (when the moon is completely unilluminated) on Jan. 21 should provide the ideal dark skies needed to spot C/2022 E3 (ZTF), weather permitting.
If you want to take a look at C/2022 E3 ZTF and don’t have the right gear, be sure to peruse our guides for the best binoculars and the best telescopes to view the comet or anything else in the sky. For capturing the best comet images you can, we have recommendations for the best cameras for astrophotography and best lenses for astrophotography.
Editor’s Note: If you snap the comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF), and would like to share it with Space.com’s readers, send your photo(s), comments, and your name and location to spacephotos@space.com.
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