![comet tonight comet tonight](http://cdn.radioiowa.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Comet-45P-NASA-photo.jpg)
Afterwards, its peak brightness is estimated to be between +2 to -6. If it keeps going at this rate of increasing brightness, it could reach a magnitude of +5 by May 1, 2020. Skywatchers can currently observe ATLAS with medium-sized telescopes during very dark skies. But according to the Comet Observation Database, ATLAS has increased from a +17 magnitude in February to +8 magnitude in March, which is around 600 times brighter than astronomers had first predicted. When it was first discovered, ATLAS was at a brightness magnitude of around +20.
![comet tonight comet tonight](https://www.unilad.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/photo-of-shooting-stars-during-nighttime-1250048.jpg)
NASA/MSFC/Aaron Kingery Comet Atlas: How bright will it be?Īlthough it’s difficult to predict exactly how bright the comet will be by the time it approaches our view, ATLAS has shown promise as it continues to increase in brightness over time. You should allow for your eyes to get accustomed to the dark for about 30 minutes before viewing time.Ĭomet ISON was around 44 million miles from the Sun when it was captured by a telescope in 2013.
![comet tonight comet tonight](https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/thumbnails/image/2017/08/13/18/an128117221editors-note-dig.jpg)
It is best to find a location far removed from interfering light, and to block out any kind of flashlight or electronic devices. Comet Atlas: Where to look in the sky?ĪTLAS is best viewed in the Northern Hemisphere, or north of the equator, so you should look toward that direction in the sky. The best time to view the comet is around 9 pm your local time, or 8 pm without daylight timing. A new Moon is barely visible in the night sky as it lies on the same side of the Earth as the Sun, therefore it provides the perfect opportunity to view other objects in the sky without the disrupting light of the Moon. Perhaps the most opportune day to view comet ATLAS would be on May 22 as it will coincide with the start of a new lunar phase. There are some astronomers who predict that the comet will be visible in the night sky around May 1, 2020, reports EarthSky. In the meantime, skywatchers may be able to observe ATLAS within the next couple of weeks, should it continue to increase in brightness at the current rate. However, if it does survive the journey, ATLAS will hit its peak brightness by the end of May, where it could possibly grow brighter than Venus and become visible to the naked eye. Rolando Ligustri (CARA Project, CAST)Ĭomets are at risk of breaking apart as they draw nearer to the Sun, running out of gas and disintegrating from the heat of the star. Since its discovery, ATLAS has surprised astronomers by increasing in brightness. The comet ATLAS will be closest to Earth on May 23, 2020. ATLAS is headed toward the Sun, and will make its closest approach on May 31, 2020, where it will be as close as 23,517,819 miles to the star, that’s closer than planet Mercury is to the Sun.
#Comet tonight how to
In order to prepare skywatchers for this event, Inverse has put together an ATLAS guide on when, and how to view the comet? Where did the comet originate from? And what exactly are comets anyway? Comet Atlas: When to see it?Īs comets travel closer to the Sun, they increase in brightness as the heat from the star causes them to burn. That's a much higher rate than astronomers first predicted, which has lead them to believe that the comet, dubbed ATLAS, is about to grace our skies with perhaps one of the brightest light shows that we’ve seen in a while. But since then, it has been brightening at a rate of 0.25 magnitude every day as it makes its way closer to the Sun. When it was first observed, the comet was quite faint. On December 28, 2019, the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System detected a new, peculiar comet.