It is the size of Mount Everest and will make its first visit to the inner solar system in more than 70 years. It may be visible to the naked eye in the coming weeks. The “devil” comet that will be seen in the sky excites astronomers. The object is known as 12P/Pons-Brooks and displays a ‘horned appearance’. It will reach its closest approach to the Sun on April 21, reaching its brightest point.
In the northern hemisphere, you will have better visibility from now until mid-April. But it won’t be the easiest to spot.
Every 71 years
«It will be visible to the naked eye if you don’t have a Moon in the sky, if there is no light pollution and if the sky is really clear. But most of us will need a pair of binoculars. Dr. Robert Massey explains it in a statement. He is deputy executive director of the British Royal Astronomical Society (RAS).
Dr. Massey said stargazers should look west-northwest after sunset. The “devil” comet that will be seen in the sky repeats its orbit once every 71.3 years. It will not be visible again until 2095.
The icy body has a core about 34 kilometers in diameter. It was recognized as a comet in 1812. However, it had already been seen in the 14th century. It is named after the French astronomer Jean-Louis Pons, who discovered it in the early 19th century. Also from the British-American astronomer William Robert Brooks, who observed it on its next orbit in 1883.
Horns and green
The comet exhibits a couple of unusual features. Firstly, the photographs of its approach have captured the ‘curious’ green color of the comet. “That’s because it has a molecule called dicarbon,” Dr. Massey explained. «What it does is absorb sunlight. Part of it radiates with that characteristic green tint.
The other interesting attribute is their occasional ‘horned appearance’. This is what earned Pons-Brooks the nickname ‘Devil Comet’.
Why do these pointed horn shapes appear? It’s because the icy object is classified as a cryovolcanic comet. It means that it regularly erupts with dust, gases and ice when the pressure inside it increases as it heats up.
