Dubbed Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks, this cosmic wonder suddenly intensified in brightness by a staggering 100-fold on July 20, emitting plumes of debris and ice into the void of space that formed a distinctive horseshoe shape akin to the Millennium Falcon.
What makes this celestial event even more thrilling is that in the coming year, on June 2, 2024, the comet will make its closest approach to the sun, coming within approximately 144 million miles from Earth. Coincidentally, this will happen just weeks after a total solar eclipse in North America on April 8, 2024, making it a truly unique and rare cosmic occurrence.
Amateur sky watchers may have the opportunity to witness this phenomenon without the need for telescopes. While experts suggest using binoculars for a better view, the comet's anticipated brightness should make it visible to the naked eye.
"It's once-in-a-blue-moon that you see a comet next to an eclipsed sun," Richard Miles, of the British Astronomical Association, told US media. "What it could also do is have an outburst during the eclipse."
The discovery of Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks aligns with the belief that comets originate from the pristine Oort cloud, which lies beyond the orbits of Neptune and Uranus. This distant region provides essential insights into the early conditions of our solar system and the processes that shaped it over billions of years.
Elek Tamás, of the Harsona Observatory in Hungary, discovered the comet's outburst on July 20, and it was subsequently captured by the Comet Chasers education and outreach project led by Helen Usher with the Cardiff/Open University in the UK, using the Faulkes Telescope. Scientists estimate the comet has already released an astonishing 10 billion kilograms of dust and ice into space.
While most eager sky watchers will need to wait until next year to catch a glimpse of the Millennium Falcon-shaped comet, amateur astronomers with a six-inch telescope can attempt to spot it now by aiming towards the constellation of Draco in the Northern Sky.