If you are a fan of sky watching, make sure to turn your eyes to the sky this evening.
A once-in-a-lifetime comet is set to become visible for the first time in 160,000 years, and you don’t want to miss it.
The comet, named C/2024 G3 (ATLAS), was discovered by the ATLAS survey system and is slowly approaching the inner solar system.
Current calculations indicate that it will reach its closest point to the sun today at a distance of about 8.3 million miles.
While this may seem far away, it is relatively close, with astronomers calling the comet a “sun-avoidant.”
“The comet is expected to make its closest approach to the Sun (known as perihelion) around January 13, 2025,” said Dr. Shyam Balaji, a researcher in astroparticle physics and cosmology at King’s College London.
“However, as with all comets, its visibility and brightness are unpredictable.
“Observers may have opportunities to spot it on days around perihelion, depending on local conditions and comet behavior.”
If you are a fan of sky watching, make sure to turn your eyes to the sky this evening. A once-in-a-lifetime comet is set to become visible for the first time in 160,000 years — and you don’t want to miss it
This image of the comet was taken early yesterday morning near Tornaja, Slovakia
Comets are frozen remains from the formation of the solar system and are composed of dust, rocks and ice.
They range from a few miles to tens of miles across, but as they orbit close to the sun they heat up and spew out gases and dust in a glowing head that can be larger than a planet.
This material forms a “tail” that extends millions of miles and makes for a striking sight in the night sky.
NASA estimates that there are billions of comets orbiting the Sun in the Kuiper Belt — a region of the solar system home to Pluto — and in the outermost Oort Cloud.
During its passage, the brightness of comet C/2024 G3 will be affected by its proximity to the Sun, according to Dr. Balaji.
‘[This] She explained that ice and frozen gases rise, leading to a coma and possibly a tail.
“While some predictions suggest it may become very bright, the comet’s brightness forecast is very uncertain.”
“Many comets end up being much fainter than initially expected.”
During its passage, the brightness of comet C/2024 G3 will be affected by its proximity to the Sun, according to Dr. Balaji. Pictured: Comet C2023 A3
The comet will be more visible to people in the Southern Hemisphere, who will be able to look toward the eastern horizon before sunrise, or the western horizon after sunset.
However, if you are in the Northern Hemisphere (including the UK), viewing conditions may be slightly more difficult, due to the comet’s position relative to the Sun.
The Central Office of Astronomical Telegrams expects that the comet will approach the Sun at 10.17 am GMT today, before passing close to Earth a few hours later.
However, according to New worldThe comet will be visible until January 14.
In fact, the best viewing time for places like the United States and Europe will come about 30 minutes after sunset tomorrow.
If you missed it, there’s bad news.
Calculations indicate that this is a “long-period” comet, meaning you would have to wait thousands of years before it returns to the solar system!