A huge comet the size of Halley’s comet has been observed brightening by five times in recent nights, with unexpected “horns” seen around its nucleus.
Some have speculated that its horseshoe shape makes it resemble the Millennium Falcon spaceship in Star Wars.
Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks was already on the cusp of being big news on our planet. It orbits the sun every 71 years, but will next get closest to the sun on April 21, 2024 and brightest in Earth’s night sky on June 2, 2024.
It’s predicted to reach magnitude +4.7 so will potentially be visible to the naked eye at night during April, May and June 2024.
Comet In Outburst
On July 19, 2023, Pons-Brooks was first seen brightening drastically by Elek Tamás at Hungary’s Harsona Observatory, according to Sky and Telescope. It was five times brighter than expected—magnitude 16.6 rather than magnitude 11.6—suggesting an outburst.
A comet in outburst means an unexpected brightening and expansion of a halo of material from the nucleus—the central core of a comet.
Comet Grows Horns
Since the outburst Pons-Brooks has been seen to morph into an unusual shape. From July 22 the comet has been imaged with a pair of “horns” protruding from the coma—the fuzzy area around the comet’s nucleus.
The horns could be caused by the nucleus of the comet blocking the view of its tail, from Earth’s perspective.
Pons-Brooks is currently in the constellation Draco “the Dragon” in the northern sky. Despite the huge increase in brightness, Pons-Brooks remains at magnitude 11.6‚ far too dim to be seen with the naked eye or binoculars.
It currently requires a six-inch telescope to see clearly. However, just last week it could only be glimpsed using an eight-inch telescope.
Halley-Type Comet
Last seen as a naked-eye object in 1954, Pons-Brooks is referred to by astronomers as a “Halley-type comet” because its 71 years orbit of the sun puts it in the same class (Halley’s comet takes 75-76 years to orbit the sun). Other comets take many thousands of years to orbit the sun.
It was discovered in 1812 by Jean Louis Pons in France and confirmed in 1883 in America by William R. Brooks, hence the name.
Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.