by Martin Leduc
published on
10 March 24 at 8:37 pm
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For your binoculars! For some time now, the sky has been adorned with new sparkles. This is emitted by light 12P/Ponce-BrooksA comet that returns Every 71 years Say hello (from a distance).
And it’s the best time to watch it By mid-March. “The week of March 11 to 17 will be very good, but with the new moon this weekend, the conditions may be met,” explains. actu.fr Nicolas Biver, President of the Comet Commission of the French Astronomical Society (SAF) and astrophysicist at the Paris Observatory.
12P/Pons-Brooks will be observable again in late March and into late April, “but that’s not certain yet”.
Where to look to see 12P/Pons-Brooks?
To be almost guaranteed to see the comet this weekend and next week, you have to be equipped with binoculars “40 to 50 mm minimum diameter,” notes the president of the SAF Comet Commission.
As with all events that happen above our heads, you first have to be patient and choose your spot carefully. ideally, A place free from any light pollution.
And above all, put your eyes in the right place: towards the north-west. “About 8°C below the Andromeda Galaxy,” clarifies Nicholas Biver.
A comet that “could catch a surprise”
Unfortunately, “2024 is not a very favorable time for observation. There won’t be a later one either,” fumes the expert. In fact, it is not on the right side of the sun. “If she had come four months earlier, it would have been great,” he regrets.
But, who knows? This comet, which is about the same size as Halley’s comet Radius more than 5 km“Used to anger”.
What is an explosion, anyway? To simplify and schematize it as much as possible, it is a phenomenon that makes an object brighter, and that can last for a few days. But what says “brighter”, also says “more visible”, so “no need for binoculars”.
Even if nothing is certain, “it’s quite possible that 12P/Pons-Brooks will experience a bounce in the coming days,” says Nicolas Biver wryly. All the more reason to keep an eye on it…
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