Comet PanSTARRS and a Crescent Moon
Explanation:
A comet has brightened quickly and unexpectedly.
Discovered last year,
Comet C/2014 Q1 (PanSTARRS) is expected to be
visible now for a few days to the unaided eye,
just after sunset, from some locations.
The comet rounded the Sun on July 6 and apparently has shed quite a bit of gas
and dust.
Today it is now as close as it will ever get to the Earth, which is another factor
in its
recent great apparent brightness
and the large angular extent of its tails.
In the featured
image taken two days ago,
Comet PanSTARRS is seen sporting a short white dust
tail fading to the right,
and a long blue
ion tail pointing away from the recently set Sun.
A crescent moon dominates the image center.
Tomorrow,
Comet
PannSTARRS will pass only 7 degrees away from a bright
Jupiter, with even brighter Venus nearby.
Due to its proximity to the Sun, the
comet
and its tails may best be seen in the sunset din with binoculars or cameras using
long-duration exposures.
APOD Editor to Speak: Saturday, August 8 at
Keweenaw Science & Engineering
Festival
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
