The comet appears after fifty thousand years

About a dozen comets are captured by astronomers' telescopes each year. Among these, only a few comets manage to attract the attention of the public, which the whole world is excited about. This is a comet that is approaching the earth after fifty thousand years! It is named C/2022 E3 (ZTF).

Comet Neowise 

Scientists discovered the comet for the first time in March last year. At that time it was passing Jupiter. Its position was about 399 miles from the Sun. At first thought to be an asteroid, scientists were soon mistaken. It is named C/2022 E3 (ZTF) as it is the third comet discovered by the Zwicky Transient Facility during the fifth half-month (A, B, C, D, E) of 2022.

Image credit: Chris Schur

Bright comets usually occur only two to three times every 15/20 years. They can be seen with the naked eye without the help of a telescope. Comet Neowise was last seen with the naked eye in 2020. Comet ZTF is placed early in the line of bright comets by scientists. The comet has already been captured very well by the telescope. Its greenish tail has baffled scientists even though it continues to brighten towards November.

It is gradually approaching the earth. The comet will be closest to Earth on February 1. It will come closest to the Earth at a distance of about 28 million miles at 12:11 PM Bangladesh time on February 1. The comet will pass close to Mars by February 10. If you are lucky, in a completely dark sky, in the right environment, you can witness this history with your bare eyes! It will never return to the solar system after that.