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Hot on the tail of Quadrantid meteor showeranother show in the sky is about to arrive: comet Atlas C/2024 G3, which will reach perihelion – the point of its orbit closest to the sun – on January 13. point to Earth, and could become the brightest comet of 2025, during a year in which no other comet is likely to be visible to the naked eye. Here’s everything you need to know.
C/2024 G3 was discovered on April 5, 2024 by the Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System (Atlas) – a network of telescopes that scans space for asteroids that could hit Earth. The comet comes from the Oort Clouda remote region at the far end of the solar system that is believed to contain the remains of the materials that formed the planets of the solar system.
When comet C/2024 G3 reaches perihelion, it comes only 13.5 million kilometers from the sun – for context, Mercury, the closest planet to the sun, orbits the star at a distance of 47 million kilometers . According to the latest calculations reported by the Planetary SocietyC/2024 G3 could reach a magnitude of -4.5, which is about the same as Venus, and is likely to be visible to the naked eye for people located in the southern hemisphere.
The comet’s unusually close trip to the sun, however, raises questions about whether it will survive. Its orbital path suggests that it is a dynamically old comet, and that it is not its first trip around the sun. In fact, its last approach is estimated to have been around 160,000 years ago, which means it may have already survived a step closer. “It will be very heated and can not survive,” says Nick James, director of the comet section of the u British Astronomical Association. “But if it is, it could be a striking object in the evening sky from the southern hemisphere after perihelion.”
How to Observe the Comet
If it survives unscathed, the comet will be visible in the western southern hemisphere just after sunset on January 13. The comet’s orbital configuration makes it difficult to observe for those in the northern hemisphere – it will appear very low in the sky shortly after. sunset or before dawn, but it is likely to be drowned by twilight.
The comet’s proximity to the sun means that identification could be dangerous, and James says that C/2024 G3 “should only be observed if you are an experienced observer”. Looking directly at the sun without protective equipment can cause permanent eye damage.
There will also be interference from the light of the moon, which will be in its waning phases, which could make observation more difficult. Observing the comet with the naked eye in the southern hemisphere may be possible, but binoculars or a telescope may be required.
Those who do not want to miss the show can follow the comet in images from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory I leave C3 coronagraph, or consult the IAU Minor Planet Center or him Comet Observation (COBS) database.
This story originally appeared WIRED Italy and was translated from the Italian.
