See a rare green comet closest to the sun on January 12 in live stream
A comet that hasn’t visited Earth or the inner solar system since the last ice age will make its closest approach 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 within about 100 million miles of the sun when it reaches a closest point called perihelion. The comet will then move towards it Soil its closest approach to our planet, its perigee, on Feb. 2, when it will fly past us at a distance of 26 million miles (42 million kilometers).
Although it will not be visible to the naked eye during its close approach the sun, the comet should be observable with binoculars. If C/2022 E3 (ZTF) continues to glow as it does now, it could eventually be possible to see it in the night sky with the naked eye. Whether you can see it for yourself or not, The Virtual Telescope Project will host a free live stream of the comet (opens in new tab) starting at 11 p.m. EST on Jan. 12 (0400 GMT on January 13). You can watch the live webcast courtesy of the project website (opens in new tab) or on Youtube Channel (opens in new tab). It will also appear on this page at the start time.
Related: Amazing images of beautiful 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 that the last time C/2022 E3 (ZTF)’s orbit brought it this close to Earth, our planet was in the middle of the last ice age, or “ice age,” and early Homo sapiens and Neanderthals were still sharing the planet.
According to In the air (opens in new tab) from New York City, C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will be visible in the dawn sky at perihelion, rising at 11:18 p.m. EST (0418 GMT) and reaching an elevation of 64° above 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 finally reach its brightest on February 2, when it will be closest to Earth, visible in the constellation Camelopardalis.
The comet was first identified in March 2022 by the NASA’s wide-field survey camera Zwicky temporary facility and it was initially believed to be a asteroid. It was the rapid clearing of C/2022 E3 (ZTF) as it left the inner orbit of Jupiter that indicated the true nature of a comet.
The brightening of comets can be difficult to predict, but even if C/2022 E3 (ZTF) doesn’t brighten enough to become visible to the unaided eye, it will still be observable in 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 northwest in January. The comet will become visible to skywatchers in the southern hemisphere in early February 2023.
The new moon phase (when the moon is completely unlit) on January 21 should provide the ideal dark sky needed to spot C/2022 E3 (ZTF), weather permitting.
If you want to check out C/2022 E3 ZTF and you don’t have the right gear, be sure to check out our guides to 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’ve got recommendations for the best astrophotography cameras and best lenses for astrophotography.
Editor’s note: If you captured Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) and would like to share it with Space.com readers, send your photo(s), comments, and name and location to [email protected]
follow us on twitter @Spacedotcom or on Facebook.
#rare #green #comet #closest #sun #January #live #stream