Comet 2023: how to observe comet ZTF, visible to the naked eye?

COMET. C/2022 E3 (ZTF), such is its name. The comet will gradually approach Earth in the coming days. Will it be visible? How to observe it? What date and time? Here’s what you need to know.

[Mis à jour le 13 janvier 2023 à 18h09] 50,000. This is the number of years that have passed since the last visit to C/2022 E3 (ZTF). The good news is that this comet which has reached its closest point to the Sun January 12 should gradually approach our planet Earth. It should be more and more visible… to the naked eye! A boon for all amateur astronomers who will be able, moreover, to enjoy the show for several days since the visibility of this comet, which will be observable with binoculars from 3 a.m., according to the site specializing in astronomy Stelvision, should increase in the coming days. Comet ZTF will be at its peak on February 1. This is indeed the date on which the comet will be closer to Earth.

Composed of ice, gas and dust, the comet has a diameter “about a kilometer”. How to observe it? And, above all, how to recognize it? Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) has the appearance of a small green dot in the sky and presents a luminous trail that reflects the light of the Sun, offering an unforgettable spectacle from Earth. Of course, to observe this natural spectacle, it is still necessary that the sky is sufficiently clear and that you are in a place sufficiently protected from light pollution. The comet is visible “in the morning sky, as it heads northwest,” according to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. If you miss the appointment, which is spread over several days or even weeks, know that you will have to wait 50 000 years to see the celestial object again. At 20 Minutes, Léa Griton, lecturer at Sorbonne University and researcher at the Paris Observatory, explains that “in the solar systemthe objects are all subject to the enormous attraction of the Sun”. And if “the orbit of the planets is almost round”, that of the comets has “a very crushed ellipse”. planet blue, C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will therefore return to the confines of our solar system.

What is the next visible comet in 2023?

The next comet which will pass close to the Earth is therefore the comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF). It has been visible from our planet since December and will pass closest to us on 1^er February 2023. It is currently observable in the sky of the Northern Hemisphere and will be more and more so until February 1st. The last passage of this comet near our planet dates back 50,000 years. It is therefore a spectacle not to be missed. Also in 2023, the comet 103P Hartley could also graze the Earth on the date of October 13, 2023.

C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is a comet discovered in early March 2022 using a camera from the Palomar Observatory Telescope in California. According to the calculations of astronomers, this is not the first time that it has approached the Earth, but to find its last visit, it is necessary to go back 50,000 years. At the time, Neanderthals may have seen it by looking at the sky…

C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is currently near the part of the solar system in which we find ourselves. After approaching the Sun on January 12, 2023, it should pass close to the Earth on January 1^er february. It will then be 42 million kilometers above our heads. Its magnitude at the time of this passage is estimated between 5.1 and 7.35. This will be the perfect time to admire it.

Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) moves across the sky night after night. It was between the constellations of Hercules and Bouvier on January 10, 2023 and is moving towards the North Star. She will cross the constellation of the Dragon on January 25. After that, it will reach the constellation Giraffe from January 28. It is at this location that you will be able to observe it on the 1^er February when it will be closest to the Earth. After this date, C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will cross the constellation of the Coachman before approaching Mars on February 11 and 12. Using binoculars, it will then be possible to admire the two stars at the same time.

To locate the comet in the sky, you can use the Star Walk 2 and Sky Tonight smartphone apps. Website Stelvision also offers maps showing the path of the comet in the sky during the months of January and February.

This month of January 2023, comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is visible in the night sky. Before January 15, it is observable from 3 am. After this date, it will be high enough in the sky to remain visible throughout the night.

When comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is closest to Earth, the 1^er February 2023, it will be visible throughout the night. It will be high in the sky at sunset. From 3 a.m. it will begin to descend toward the northwest horizon, but will remain visible until dawn in areas where the horizon is clear.

Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is highly visible using a telescope throughout January. Since it is very difficult to predict the variations in luminosity of comets, it cannot be predicted that it will be visible every night with the naked eye or through binoculars. According to NASA, it will gain in luminosity by the time it passes near the Earth. It is then possible to admire it with the naked eye in the night sky. To be sure not to miss anything of the show, equip yourself with binoculars or even a telescope when it approaches the Earth.

You can also photograph a comet when it is visible to the naked eye with a simple camera with manual settings. You will be using a wide angle lens using fairly long exposures like 20 seconds and ISO 1600 (minimum 800). Attention, if the light pollution is important, it is advisable to lower the ISO. Think of composition, placing the comet above a building or a tree, or between two mountains. If you don’t have a tripod, use a self-timer to prevent the photo from being blurry when taken.

What is a comet?

A comet is a celestial body made up of frozen gases, rocks and dust that originated from the formation of the solar system. These are real cosmic snowballs. So when this type of object passes close to the Sun, the latter heats the comet and melts the material. The comet then begins spitting out dust and gas in a gigantic glowing form, far larger than most planets. The size of a comet can vary from a few kilometers to tens of kilometers wide, when it orbits closest to the Sun. When its substances flow out, they form a spectacular cloud of gas and dust that trails behind it for millions of miles and that’s when it can be seen from Earth with the naked eye. .

Two tails form behind the comet. The first is made up of dust and is directly linked to the movement of the object. It is the most spectacular because it can measure several million kilometres. The second is made up of gas and is called the ionized tail.

What is the composition of a comet?

Comets are formed from materials left over from the formation of the solar system. These objects are therefore witnesses to the formation of the solar system. “This material has not evolved, it has been kept intact, as if it had been placed in the freezer, and it is therefore the witness of these first moments.” said the astrophysicist Françis Rocart, head of the Rosetta program in an article in the World in 2014.

A comet’s nucleus is made up of frozen gases in the form of ice, rocks, and rock dust. Studies of Comet Tchouri indicate that it is also covered in carbon and have also spotted many organic molecules that had never been identified anywhere other than on Earth. Thus, it could be that the elements which allowed the appearance of the life on our planet come from space and were brought by an intensive bombardment of 4 billion years ago. To find out more, we would have to study the composition of many other comets…