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Credit & Copyright: José J. Chambó
Explanation:
A new
year's treat for binoculars, as 2016 begins
Comet Catalina
(C/2013 US10) now sweeps through planet Earth's predawn skies
near bright Arcturus, alpha star of Bootes.
But this telescopic
mosaic
from December 21 follows the
pretty tails of the comet across a field of view as wide as
10 full moons.
The smattering of distant galaxies
and faint stars in the
background are in the constellation Virgo.
Trailing behind the comet's orbit, Catalina's dust tail fans
out below and left in the frame.
Its ion tail is angled toward the top right, away from the Sun
and buffeted by the solar wind.
On January 17, the outward bound visitor from the
Oort Cloud
will make its closest approach to Earth, a mere 110 million kilometers away,
seen near bright stars along the handle of the Big Dipper.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: comet
Publications with words: comet
See also:
- APOD: 2024 April 17 Á Total Eclipse and Comets
- APOD: 2024 April 8 Á The Changing Ion Tail of Comet Pons Brooks
- Comet Pons-Brooks at Night
- APOD: 2024 March 18 Á Comet Pons Brooks Swirling Coma
- Comet 12P/Pons Brooks in Northern Spring
- Structure in the Tail of Comet 12P/Pons Brooks
- The Snows of Churyumov Gerasimenko