Comet Pons-Brooks will be extremely close by when Jupiter and Uranus come in conjunction
Image of Devil Comet passing across the universe (Representative image)
In a visual treat for stargazers and astronomers, the 'Devil Comet' or 12/P Pons-Brooks will reach its brightest this week.
The comet will also sparkle close to Jupiter and Uranus' conjunction when the “bulls-eye planet” and giant planet will meet to form an arc for 30 minutes on April 20.
On April 21, this twelfth comet - which is around the same size as Halley’s Comet, will be visible in the west after remaining in the dark for many months.
Also Read:Devil Comet can now be spotted from Earth, but right now only in this region
Stargazers will only need a clear sky and a pair of binoculars to see the green comet in the southwest.
Mother of Dragons comet reaches perihelion
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The 10.5-mile-wide (17 kilometres) Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks, which is also known as the "Mother of Dragons comet", will be at its closest point to the sun, called perihelion. It will be at a distance of about 144 million miles (232 million km) from our star.
This position will make the comet significantly brighter and easier to see with the naked eye in the western sky after sunset.
For stargazers, it will be best to see the comet on April 21 and a few nights before and after when it will be at its brightest.
The people trying to see the comet in northern latitudes may find it difficult since it will be positioned in the glow of sunset.
"In spite of the fact that the comet should be brightest because it is nearest to the sun, it is quite distant from us," said Frank Maloney, who is an associate professor of astronomy and astrophysics at Villanova University in Pennsylvania, while speaking to Live Science.
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"Comets can exhibit major changes in brightness as the sun warms them, but unless something happens, the comet will be visible only in binoculars or a telescope," he added.
This may change if the comet has another outburst like the one it had in July 2023. This led to a pair of demonic horns, and thus the nickname"devil comet."
As per the latest observations, the comet does not sport horns any longer since it lost the "notch" of ice in its core which made the horns appear.
(With inputs from agencies)