Green comet to pass by Earth for first time in 50,000 years
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - In the next few weeks, something very neat will be appearing in the night sky.
The green comet will be visible from Earth, and it hasn't been seen on this planet in thousands of years.
If you want to see a comet every day, then you would have to come to a place like the Buhl Planetarium at the Carnegie Science Center. But if you want to see a comet that only comes around once every 50,000 years, then you'll have to go outside in the next few weeks.
NASA defines a comet as a large space object made out of dust and ice that orbits the sun. And of course, comets are best known for their long, streaming tails.
This particular comet was discovered by astronomers in San Diego back in March of 2022 and its technical name from NASA is Comet 2022 E3 (ZTF), but most people are just calling it the green comet.
Kayla Waugaman from the Carnegie Science Center says that it's called the green comet because of the color it puts off as it revolves around the sun.
"So that green color is coming from some compounds we are finding in the comet. Mostly diatomic carbon and cyanogen are found in there. As it gets close to the sunlight, that's what's giving us that green color," Waugaman said.
On its voyage through the inner solar system, the green comet will be at its closest point to the sun Thursday night and then at its closest to Earth on Feb. 1.
And while the brightness of comets can be notoriously unpredictable, KDKA-TV Meteorologist Ron Smiley says that you might be able to start seeing the green comet show up in the sky in just a few days.
"Generally, this time of year, we see a lot of cloud cover. The days that I am hopeful that we are going to see some breaks in the clouds: Sunday morning, Monday morning. No rain chances there. Temperatures will be down, but it looks like right now, pretty good viewing for any type of star viewing or gazing will happen on those days," he said.
Though it might be chilly star gazing around these parts the next few weeks, it may also be a once and in a lifetime chance to see something historically cool, before it is gone.
