The Green Comet That Will Be a ‘Once-in-a-Lifetime’ Viewing Experience

The bright green comet will not be visible again until 2317, making seeing this green beauty a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Although most of the Earth’s population can see the comet on any clear night this week, it will be at its brightest on September 12, 2023. 

The best time to see the brilliant green comet is either during the hour after sunset or the hour before dawn in the northeast region of the night sky. 

Essentially, comets, unlike asteroids, have dust or ice-like material that vaporizes as it approaches the heat of the sun. This process creates a tail and halo of light, known as a coma, that’s particularly beautiful to watch. 

These comets, which are made of water, carbon dioxide, methane, ammonia, and bits of dust and rock, orbit the sun from a distance until they eventually move closer and closer toward the star. As the comets move toward the sun, which often takes millions of years to reach, the water or ice vaporizes, creating the glow we can see from Earth. 

Either way, the average comet could take anywhere from thousands to millions of years before it is actually close enough to be vaporized by the sun and, therefore, visible on Earth. Once it can be seen from Earth, a typical comet will take 100-500 years to orbit the solar system. Thus, each individual comet is usually a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Then there was the Comet Donati in 1859, the Daylight Comet in 1910, Comet Arend-Roland in 1956, Comet Bennett in 1969, and even several more on record. 

One of the most interesting studies in the field was completed by the European Space Agency through the Rosetta Mission in 2014. During the mission, the Philae lander was sent to the comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko, and for the first time, humans were able to actually see what these comets are made of. Some scientists believe the water and organic molecules they contain could be where our water, or even our life forms, actually came from. 

Ancient people often saw comets as omens of catalysts for change. Many were afraid of them, and undoubtedly, all were in awe of these brilliant lights flying across the night sky. Some astrologists today even make predictions based on comets in the sky. However, according to modern science, they really are just molecules moving through space, not a sign of any change on Earth. 

A man named Hideo Nishimura from Japan discovered the comet on August 12, 2023, so there is still a great deal of research to be done. But so far, some researchers believe that the comet could have originated outside of our solar system, making it incredibly important to understand. 

However, one scientist, Professor Gibson, director of the E.A. Milne Centre for Astrophysics at the University of Hull, has made it clear that we are not in danger. They have been able to predict exactly where the comet is heading, and according to its trajectory, it will not hit planet Earth. 

In fact, Professor Gibson states that on September 17, 2023, Comet Nishimura will be only 27 million miles from the sun, which may lead to its complete disintegration due to extreme heat. 

Where did it come from? How long has it been traveling? What organic material is inside the comet to make it shine green? These are the questions researchers are asking, and what they find out could change how we understand our solar system as well as the creation of our planet.