Foto: University of Hertfordshire Observatory – C/2021 A1 / Creative Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://creati
Observing the starry sky, shooting stars and comets is a very popular mass entertainment. And just these days we have another unique opportunity. The highly anticipated comet – C / 2021 A1 Leonard – is approaching Earth. It should become the brightest comet in 2021. In December, Comet Leonard will be visible in the evening sky. However, a black background is necessary for her observation, ie night, it would not be possible to see her at night with the full moon.
Nature sometimes prepares many magical surprises for us in the sky, and we can observe some phenomena only once in a lifetime. Comet Leonard could make the end of this strange year a little more pleasant, because it will be possible to see it in the dark sky with a little luck and the naked eye.
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Source: Youtube
The comet is already observable with small amateur telescopes, ie in the second half of November, because its brightness is, according to the latest measurements and estimates, around 8.5 magnitudes. It moves on the border of the constellations of Honic Dogs and Berenice’s Hair, and the best time to observe it is after three o’clock in the morning (CET), when it is higher than 30 ° above the horizon. In the dark sky farther from the cities, it is also visible in binoculars, eg 10 × 50.
View of binoculars on top of Mount Lemmon, observatory.
Ultra-fast comet
Leonardo is classified as an ultra-fast comet, which moves with respect to the Earth at a speed of 254,412 km / h or 70.67 km / s. However, despite this speed in the space of our solar system, we will not see it from Earth as a fast whistling body. Like the planets, the comets move in front of the starry background, but only very slowly due to the great distances. With the telescope, it will be possible to aim the comet at the background stars and then compare the view five or ten minutes later. Only then will her movement be noticeable.
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Leonard – a new discovery
The comet was discovered by astronomer Greg Leonard earlier this year at Mount Lemmon Observatory in Arizona. The observatory is looking for near-Earth asteroids that can dangerously approach the Earth. He watched her through a telescope with a lens diameter of 1.5 meters.
The most interesting thing about the comet is the equally typical tail, which should be visible to the naked eye just at the beginning of December, when Comet Leonard approaches the Earth and the Sun. The best day to observe it will be December 13, when it gets closest to Earth, at a distance of more than 34 million km! Although it is an unimaginable distance, it will be possible to see the comet.
Telescope suitable for observing Comet Leonard.
Telescope? Exceptionally not necessary
Comet Leonard is usually too faint to see with the naked eye, but usually just a simple telescope is enough. In addition, we now have a unique opportunity, because with the end of the year approaching, it might be possible to see it in the dark sky with the naked eye. However, it should be noted that comets are unpredictable.
For Comet Leonard, it is possible that it will reach magnitude 4 before its perihelion in early January. However, because comets are scattered bodies, not stellar points, it will not appear as bright to our eye as Star 4. Magnitude, but will be well visible in the dark sky.
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Source: Youtube
Watch the December sky
On the morning of December 3, the comet will fly through the edge of the bright globular cluster M3 in the constellation Honic Dogs, and the comet and cluster M3 should have approximately similar brightness. The moon will be new at that time, so it will not interfere with observations. In the following days, the comet’s movement in the sky will gradually accelerate as it moves into the constellation of the Shepherd.
On December 6, C / 2021 A1 will pass just 5 angular degrees above the bright star Arcturus (0.1 mag, the brightest star in the northern sky). Around December 8, the comet will move to the constellation Hada, where the best time to observe it will be between 5 and 6 o’clock in the morning. It should reach the highest clarity on the day of its closest approach to Earth, ie December 12. According to the current forecast, it could be around the 4th star size. At the same time, its visibility from our latitudes ends on this day. For this reason, the best observation conditions in the week will be from 3 to 10 December. Then it will still be high enough in the sky and at the same time it will be above the line of sight with the naked eye. Observers with lower light pollution will have the advantage.
35,000 years on the road
It will of course be possible to observe the comet from many places on earth in different ways. However, if you manage to see it in eclipse near the Sun, it will be an event that happens once in a lifetime. It takes the comet tens of thousands of years to complete its orbit around the Sun.
“Orbital calculations have revealed that the object has spent the last 35,000 years traveling to the Sun after reaching an aphelion at a freezing distance of approximately 3,500 AU (3,500 times the distance between our Earth and the Sun],” Bob King reported on Skyandtelescope.com in October. According to him, after this close flyby of our Sun, we will no longer see Comet Leonard.
Resources:
www.astro.cz, theskylive.com, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C/2021_A1_(Leonard)
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