“Halloween Comet” To Be Visible in NY Daytime Skies…Or Will it?
Star-gazing enthusiasts and people all around were treated to quite the show in the month of October as this month brought with it multiple awe-inspiring celestial events.
This month sky watchers had the chance to see the Draconids meteor shower, the Orionids meteor shower which technically is ongoing even now, the arrival of a new comet called Tsuchinshan-ATLAS or simply Comet 23, and even the brightest Super Moon of the entire year called the Hunter's Moon which graced our skies just last week.
Even with all of that having happened, October has the chance to go out with a bang. A newly discovered comet is anticipated to be visible in our skies next week just before Halloween, however, circumstances beyond our control might stop it entirely.
Halloween Comet's Arrival?
Shortly after the Tsuchinshan-ATLAS or Comet 23 put on its show across the sky, this new comet was discovered by ATLAS (the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System) in Hawaii. Originally believed to be an asteroid, this new comet named Comet C/2024 S1 according to the New York Post could have been seen towards the East in today's morning sky, however it may be seen again after its trip around the sun which is expected as early as October 28.
Its reported trip around being so close to Halloween is how it gained its nickname but there may be some issues while traveling that prevent the comet from being seen on its return.
Through ATLAS observing and studying the comet's orbit, it was determined that the Halloween comet is in fact a "sungrazer". Comets are deemed sungrazers because they travel impossibly close to the Sun, or close relative to calculating distance in space anyway.
The Halloween comet's predecessor Comet 23 was also deemed a sungrazer but never got closer to the sun than the planet Mercury according to the Farmers Almanac. The Halloween Comet is expected to get much closer, in fact it'll will be roughly 100x's closer to the Sun in its travels. That's within 341,000 miles. This close distance to the sun is what makes things complicated.
The Sun's Impact
As everyone knows, the Sun being as large as it is means it has a tremendous gravitational pull and planet Earth as well as the other planets in the solar system all orbit the Sun because of that gravitational pull. The pull also affects comets, asteroids and basically anything else within its range.
The even more obvious statement regarding the Sun is that it's incredibly hot, around 27 million degrees Fahrenheit according to NASA. Those exact factors are what will impact the Halloween comet.
Reports state that the Halloween comet in its path around the sun will be subject to temperatures of 1 million degrees. Combine that with the gravitational force applied to it and the result could be the comet completely disintegrating. As astronomers and scientists have tracked the comet, observations suggest that that is indeed was it is occurring.
Halloween Comet Expectations
According to the Farmers Almanac with data from the Comet Observation Database it appears that the Halloween comet is decreasing in its brightness, which indicates that it is breaking apart.
The Halloween comet currently is registering with a brightness or magnitude of +10 or 40 times dimmer than the faintest star visible with the naked eye. Further suggestions made are that the comet is actually fading and not getting brighter like other great comets of the past.
It has also been suggested that the the nucleus of the comet has already disintegrated which would all but mean the comet itself wont survive its trip around the sun.
That being said, those waiting in anticipation may still be able to see remnants of the comet. According to the report, come early Halloween morning next week, anxious eyes should look towards the the south-east an hour before sunrise. With the aid of a tool like a pair of binoculars, the tail or what's left of the comet should be visible and appear as a faintly glowing airplane contrail.
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