Green Comet will be visible in THESE Indian states at 9.30pm today. All you need to know
2 min read . Updated: 01 Feb 2023, 08:16 PM IST
Premium- To spot the greenish-tinged comet in the skies above India, look towards the south of the Pole Star. The comet will be moving in a southerly direction and will eventually reach the head of the Orion constellation.
Offering a field day for stargazers, today, a green hued comet is likely to be most visible to the naked eye on Earth. The green comet is going to pass Earth for the first time in about 50,000 years.
Experts have said that the green comet will come so close to earth that it will be viewable in nearly every state in India and across the world. The cosmic visitor will swing by our planet at a distance of about 26.4 million miles (42.5 million kilometres).
On Monday, it appeared between the Big Dipper and Polaris, the North Star. And on Wednesday, it was positioned to appear near the constellation Camelopardalis, bordered by Ursa Major, the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper, according to Reuters.
This comet last passed Earth at a time when Neanderthals still inhabited Eurasia, our species was expanding its reach beyond Africa, big Ice Age mammals including mammoths and saber-toothed cats roamed the landscape and northern Africa was a wet, fertile and rainy place, remarks Reuters.
Here is what you can expect from the celestial display
The Green-hued comet:
A comet is a ball of ice ice, dust and rocks that typically hail from the ring of icy material called the Oort cloud at our solar system's outer edge. One known comet actually originated outside the solar system - 2I/Borisov.
This green hued comet, Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF), was discovered on 2 March 2022, by astronomers using the Zwicky Transient Facility telescope at Caltech's Palomar Observatory in San Diego. Its greenish, emerald hue reflects the comet's chemical composition - it is the result of a clash between sunlight and carbon-based molecules in the comet's coma.
NASA has announced that they will watch the green-hued comet through the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), which could provide clues about the solar system's formation.
Green Comet: States where it will be visible
Several parts of India, including West Bengal, Odisha, Ladakh, and the northeast states, will have the opportunity to witness this celestial event
Green Comet: How to watch
According to Shilpi Gupta, a Scientific Officer at the Birla Planetarium in Kolkata, the Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will not be easily visible to the naked eye and will require a binocular and clear, dark skies for proper observation. Light pollution from cities can hinder viewing, so it's recommended to travel to a location with reduced light for the best experience. With these conditions, stargazers will be able to see the faint comet moving across the sky.
Green Comet: When to watch
The optimal time to observe the Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will be after 9:30 PM, provided that the skies are clear and dark.
Green Comet: Where to look
To spot the greenish-tinged comet in the skies above India, look towards the south of the Pole Star. The comet will be moving in a southerly direction and will eventually reach the head of the Orion constellation.
(With input from Reuters)
