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Next week, astronomy enthusiasts will witness an exceptionally beautiful comet, as it approaches Earth. Comet Lulin, named after the observatory in Taiwan where its first photo was taken, has a green color to it, and might even become visible to the naked eye, with a little bit of luck.
The comet will be at its closest distance from Earth on February 24, and according to astronomers, it should be visible at around 3 a.m. NASA’s Tony Phillips said the comet will lie just a few degrees from Saturn, in the constellation Leo.
Comet Lulin, which is a non-periodic comet, was discovered by Ye Quanzhi and Lin Chi-Sheng in July 2007. The green light is produced by the gases that make up its Jupiter-sized atmosphere.
Phillips explained that the comet’s nucleus contains cyanogens - a poisonous gas common to comets, and diatomic carbon, both of them turning green when illuminated by sunlight.
On February 24, Comet Lulin will pass 38 million miles of Earth, and will be visible south-southwest of Saturn, if not to the naked eye, than with binoculars or a small telescope. Later in May, the comet is expected to pass neat Comet Cardinal.
Astronomers have estimated that the comet will reach a maximum brightness between magnitude 4 and magnitude 5.
Image Credit: Joseph Brimacombe
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