Ophélie Artaud 3:50 p.m., January 06, 2023
Named C/2022 E3 (ZTF), this comet should pass close to Earth around February 1.
Very bright, it could even be visible to the naked eye.
An event not to be missed because, if this is not the first time that this celestial body has passed near the Earth, its last passage dates back approximately 50,000 years.
On a clear night around February 1st, look up to the sky and you (maybe) can see a comet.
Named C/2022 E3 (ZTF), this celestial body is currently crossing the solar system and approaching Earth.
It should reach its closest point to the blue planet on February 1, and will be 42 million kilometers from Earth.
Very bright, the comet could therefore be visible at that time, unless it loses intensity.
On January 12, it will pass close to the Sun
Discovered in March 2022 during the Zwicky Transient Facility astronomical survey, carried out using the Samuel-Oschien telescope at the Palomar Observatory in California, the comet has since continued its journey.
On January 12, it will pass closest to the Sun, about 160 million kilometers from it.
Information confirmed by NASA, which nevertheless underlines that "if the brightness of a comet remains unpredictable, that of C/2022 E3 (ZTF) could be visible to the naked eye in a dark sky."
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On December 19, NASA managed to photograph the comet.
The image makes it possible to distinguish that it has developed a tail, this emission of plasma and dust which is created when it approaches a star, as well as a hair, this green halo around the comet, which appears when it approaches the Sun.
Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is approaching.
It is currently visible with a telescope, in the constellation of the boreal crown, in the early morning.
It may be visible to the naked eye in a few weeks, but only for people away from light pollution https://t.co/fpkiC8gs6Epic.twitter.com/LezzqY2x1E
— Eric Lagadec (@EricLagadec) December 24, 2022
How not to miss it?
This is also not the first time that this celestial object has approached Earth.
Given that it passes in the vicinity of the sun every 50,000 years, it would have passed close to our planet when Neanderthal man was still living in Europe.
C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will probably not be as bright as Comet Neowise, which many were able to admire in July 2020. But it will still be possible to observe it.
To be sure to see it, it will be necessary to favor places far from any light pollution.
It will pass close to the Pole Star, the fixed star which indicates the North, which will allow it to be contemplated for a large part of the night.
But if it does not shine enough to be visible to the naked eye, it will still be possible to observe it with binoculars or, for the lucky ones, a telescope.
An event not to be missed, because this celestial body will not return near the Earth for thousands of years.