If you’re a fan of skygazing, make sure you have your eyes to the skies 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, called C/2024 G3 (ATLAS), was discovered by the ATLAS survey sytem, and has been slowly approaching the inner solar system.
Current calculations indicate that it will make its closest approach to the sun today at a distance of about 8.3 million miles.
While that might sound far away, it’s acutally relatively close – with astronomers dubbing the comet a ‘sun-skirter’.
Dr Shyam Balaji, a researcher in astroparticle physics and cosmology at King’s College London, said: ‘The comet is expected to make its closest approach to the Sun (known as the perihelion) around January 13, 2025.
‘However, as with all comets, its visibility and brightness can be unpredictable.
‘Observers may have opportunities to spot it in the days around perihelion, depending on local conditions and the comet’s behaviour.’
If you’re a fan of skygazing, make sure you have your eyes to the skies 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 was taken of the comet early yesterday morning near Tornaľa, Slovakia
Comets are frozen leftovers from the formation of the solar system composed of dust, rock, and ices.
They range from a few miles to tens of miles wide, but as they orbit closer to the Sun they heat up and spew gases and dust into a glowing head that can be larger than a planet.
This material forms a ‘tail’ that stretches millions of miles and makes them an eye-catching sight in the night sky.
NASA estimates there are billions of comets orbiting the Sun in the Kuiper Belt – a region of the solar system home to Pluto – and the more distant Oort Cloud.
During its passing, Comet C/2024 G3’s brightness will be influenced by its proximity to the sun, according to Dr Balaji.
‘[This] causes ice and frozen gases to sublimate, creating a coma and potentially a tail,’ she explained.
‘While some predictions suggest it could become quite bright, comet brightness predictions are notoriously uncertain.
‘Many comets end up being fainter than initially expected.’
During its passing, Comet C/2024 G3’s brightness will be influenced by its proximity to the sun, according to Dr Balaji. Pictured: Comet C2023 A3
The comet will be most visible for people in the Southern Hemisphere, who will be able to look towards the eastern horizon before sunrise, or the western horizon after sunset.
However, if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere (including the UK), viewing conditions may be slightly more challenging, due to the comet’s position relative to the sun.
The Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams, predicts that the comet will make its closest approach to the sun at 10.17am GMT today, before zipping past Earth a few hours later.
However, according to New Scientist, the comet will be visible through until January 14.
In fact, the best viewing time for places like the US and Europe will come around 30 minutes after sunset tomorrow.
If you miss the viewing, there’s bad news.
Calculations suggest that this is a ‘long-period’ comet, which means you’ll have to wait thousands of years before it returns to the solar system!
