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Comet Catalina is Even Cooler With Two Tails; Won't Be Back For Centuries
Comet Catalina is Even Cooler With Two Tails; Won't Be Back For Centuries
Dec 25, 2024 2:16 AM

Comet Catalina has finally arrived and has become even cooler. According to EarthSky, .

Originally discovered by the Catalina Sky Survey on Oct. 23, 2013, (Catalina) was since it appeared inactive. Since then, it has become highly active, providing the opportunity for astronomers around the world to observe it.

The image above shows the Catalina Comet on July 7, 2014.

(NASA/JPL-Caltech)

- a dust tail and a plasma tail of ionized gas. They point away from the sun and typically are not related to the direction the comet is traveling. However, they are related to how the dust and gases interact with solar heat.

(MORE: )

After making a turn at the Sun in mid-November, above the Northern Hemisphere, according to Sky & Telescope. Binoculars will help sky gazers glimpse the comet, but naked-eye sightings could be possible by mid-December

Spotting the Catalina Comet is of particular importance this year, because . According to NASA, the Catalina Comet takes more than 450 years to orbit the sun once. EarthSky.org reports that the trajectory of the comet from the Oort cloud suggests that after its close approach to the inner solar system, the Catalina Comet will be ejected.

MORE ON WEATHER.COM: Comet Pan-STARRS

Tucson, Ariz.

The comet Pan-STARRS splits the gap between two cacti on the night of March 14, 2013. (Facebook/Pete Gregoire)

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