How (and when) to watch the massive K2 comet pass Earth

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What is K2?

Comet C/2017 K2 (PanSTARRS) – or “K2” for short – was spotted five years ago, in May 2017 by the Hubble Space Telescope, NASA reports. The agency shared an image of the comet taken on June 20, 2022, when it was (relatively) near the open star cluster IC 4665 and the bright star Beta Ophiuchi, near the star-filled edge of the Milky Way.

This is the first time comet K2 has made its way into the inner solar system from darkness and distant Oort cloudNASA explains. When it was first noticed in May 2017, it was The most active inner comet ever discovered – about 2.4 billion km from the sun, between Orbital distances for Uranus and Saturn.

What is the size of K2?

When Comet K2 first became visible on the Hubble Space Telescope, scientists estimated that it had a core about 11 miles in diameter. But according to research from Canada – France – Hawaii telescopeThe radius of the comet’s nucleus is estimated to be between nine and 50 miles. Either way, it’s pretty big.

And that doesn’t account for the size of K2’s tail – the trail of gases and dust behind the comet – also known as a “coma”. According to preliminary estimates, the tail of K2 is Between 81,000 and 500,000 miles Next to. For some perspective, this falls somewhere between the width of one and six planets wide.

When is K2 visible?

Your best chance of seeing comet K2 will be on the night of July 14, the time when it will cross its closest point to Earth. Although it is bulky, you will likely need At least a small telescope to discover the culprit. Look for a blurry spot of light (which is the tail).

If you’d prefer to watch the comet pass Earth from the comfort of your own home, the Virtual Telescope Project It will be broadcast live starting at 6.15pm on July 14th. But don’t worry too much if you miss K2 on July 14th – it should be Visible with a telescope until September.

The closest to the sun will be in December.