Green Comet, LIVE: when and at what time it can be seen in the southern hemisphere

THE green kite approaches Earth for the first time 50,000 years. This is one of the most anticipated astronomical sightings since the celestial body was first discovered nearly a year ago.

THE green kite can be seen in both hemispheres thanks to its intense green glow, which is produced by the melting ice from its core approaching the Sun. This brought it out a gas and dust tailwhich is visible to the naked eye.

Named by scientists as C/2022 E3 (ZTF), the green kite era transiting Jupiter’s orbit and was discovered in March 2022 with a telescope from the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) astronomical project, in California, USA

What will the passage of the green comet be like?

According to NASA, the green kite He last visited us in Neanderthal times.

This 2023 will approach 42 million kilometers (26 million miles) on Wednesday 1st February before taking off again, probably not to return millions of years.

Discovered less than a year ago, the harmless green kite it is only visible in the night sky with binoculars or small telescopes, and possibly with the naked eye in the darkest corners of the planet. Northern Hemisphere.

in his way, it will become brighter as it approaches our planet and climbs higher on the horizon until late January. The best times to see it will be just before Sunrise.

While many comets have graced the sky over the past year, “this one seems to be a bit larger and therefore little brighter and it’s getting a little closer to Earth’s orbit, said NASA’s comet and asteroid guru, Paolo Chodas.

THE green kite will pass on February 1 between the orbits of earth and mars at a relative speed of 207,000 km/h (128,500 mph). It is estimated that your nucleus It has a diameter of 1,600 meters (one mile) and its tails million kilometers (miles).

What gives the comet its green color?

THE flying kites I am cold bodies formed by dust, stones and frozen gases, which circulate within the limits of the Solar system. However, sometimes they feel drawn to the Sun King.

When this happens, the heat from the star slowly begins to evaporate, thus a cloud called a coma and a tail form around it.

In this case, the green colour is due to the gases it contains, is caused by the presence of diatomic carbon Absorbs the sun’s ultraviolet rays.

It shouldn’t look as bright as the 2020 Neowise or Hale Bopp and the mid to late 1990s Hyakutake.

But “it will be bright by virtue of its close pass with Earth … which will allow scientists to do more experiments and allow people to see a beautiful comet,” said Karen Meech, an astronomer at the University of Hawaii.

So much so that since it was discovered the brightness of this green comet has increased drastically, so astronomers estimate that, between 1 and 2 February it could be visible without the aid of tools.

Green kite: when and at what time it will be seen

As we said, the green kite it began to be visible from the end of January and will remain so until mid-February. There will be two different viewing periods.

From January 20 to 31, those living in the Northern Hemisphere and in different tropical latitudes had the opportunity to enjoy it.

And from February 1 to 10 it will be best seen in the southern hemisphereincluding the Argentina. The optimal time will be between 45 minutes after sunset and up to three hours after.

Especially during the night of February 4th can be seen more clearly.

In Argentina it will be possible to see the path of the green comet more easily in the north from the country. For this reason, in other areas it is better to observe it with binoculars or small telescopes.

“February 2 will be the day that passes closest to the earth. Between February 5 and 7 are good days to be able to observe it from the southern hemisphere. Towards the end of January, it was best seen in the northern hemisphere,” explained Diego Bagú, an astronomer at the National University of La Plata, in dialogue with sitioandino.com.ar.