Neanderthal comet: map, how to see it between February 1 and 2, 2023

Riccardo Cristilli

01 February

– Rome

The Earth is preparing to experience a unique event, but we probably won’t even realize it. Between 1 and 2 February the Comet Neanderthal it will pass at its closest point to the earth, at approx 42 million kilometers, but the moon might keep us from seeing it. Late at night and just before dawn on 2 February it should reach its maximum height, theoretically in a particularly dark place it could also be seen at 19:00 on 1 February. But the Moon, according to experts, will compromise its visibility, and then obviously there is the weather to consider.

how to see neanderthal comet

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A truly extraordinary event for comet c/2022 E3 ZTF, renamed Neanderthal because according to some backward studies, its last passage would date back to 50 thousand years ago when there were Neanderthals on Earth. And who knows if without the lights of the city, in the pristine Earth, some of our ancestors noticed this strange celestial phenomenon. In the night between 1 and 2 February this comet will be near the North Star but to see it you have to hope that the sky is clear and have good professional binoculars. However, the safest way to observe it is the Virtual Telescope thanks to electronic telescopes, just go to the dedicated site and observe this natural phenomenon through the screen of a PC or smartphone, the tools that now filter our lives.

what is a comet?

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A comet is formed from frozen debris formations of the solar system, composed of a mix of non-volatile grains and frozen gases. It is no coincidence that they are often called dirty snowballs. They are considered among the oldest phenomena in the solar system, observed for thousands of years, just consider how often they are mentioned or depicted in antiquity, even in relation to significant events in history. The name derives from the Greek term for a head with long hair, the way the Greeks identified comets. There Halley’s comet it is certainly one of the best known, with an orbital period of 75 years, last observed in 1986 and of which there are traces in ancient Athenian and Chinese writings.

comet neandherthal and the earth

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Neandherthal’s comet “is part of the families of very long-period comets that come from the most distant areas of the solar system”, explained to Ansa the researcher Elena Mazzotta Epifani of the INAF (National Institute of Astrophysics). This comet, like the other long-term comets, have a characteristic green crown which indicates the presence of carbon material. The astronomer told ANSA how just discovered last March, this comet did not yet have such a developed tail and has since been studied by researchers. “Such rare visitors are important because they can tell us about our origins ” concluded the researcher.