A visitor who every 50,000 years frequents the sky of planet Earth had, on January 12, its point of closest proximity to the Sun and, from the beginning of February, it will be visible in the southern hemisphere. This is comet C/2022 E3.
The comet was detected by the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) program in March 2022 as it passed through Jupiter’s orbit. The observation was made using the Samuel-Oschin telescope at the Palomar Observatory in California (USA).
According to the National Observatory, the point of closest approach of this “relatively small” comet – about 1 km in diameter – to Earth will be on February 1st.
Comets are objects made mostly of frozen gas, rock and dust, and become more visible as they approach the sun, and their ice turns to gas, forming a cloud around them.
The last time C/2022 E3 was visible, Earth was still inhabited by Neanderthals, as astronomer Filipe Monteiro said, based on the orbital period of this celestial body that is believed to originate from the Oort Cloud – one of the most distant regions of our solar system.
“Some predictions suggest that this comet’s orbit is so eccentric that it is no longer orbiting the Sun. If so, then he will not return and will simply continue to leave,” the National Observatory said in a statement.
how to observe
Observation will begin to be facilitated in the first days of February, “with a better observation height from the 4th of February towards the north and below the star Capela”, explains Monteiro.
As the days go by, the comet will be seen higher in the sky and with more visibility time. At its closest approach, the celestial body will be about 42 million kilometers from Earth.
The comet can only be seen with the naked eye if the sky conditions are very favorable, that is, with a dark sky, no moon, and no light pollution. This could be the first comet of the year seen with the naked eye, and the first after Comet Neowise, which appeared in 2020.
“To observe the comet, the most sensible thing is to use binoculars, which will facilitate the observation of this illustrious visitor. In addition, it is important to highlight that it is not an easy task to find a comet in the sky. Therefore, in addition to instruments (binoculars, telescopes, cameras), it is interesting that people look for a place far from urban centers, thus avoiding light pollution. To make it even easier to observe the comet, the best thing to do is look for the comet when the moon is no longer in the sky”, explains Monteiro.
For novice observers, he suggests that the ideal date is February 10, between 7 pm and 9 pm, when the comet will find itself very close to the planet Mars.
“One strategy that can be used by beginners as well as casual photographers is to try to photograph the comet by pointing your camera at its approximate location in the sky and taking long exposure shots of 20 to 30 seconds,” he said.
“When viewing the images, you will possibly notice a fuzzy, tailed object. Using this technique, many are managing to photograph the comet even if they don’t see it in the sky,” she said.
