April Fools’ Day Comet Will Be the Closest Pass to Earth on Record…No Joke
It might be streaming by on April Fools’ Day, but this comet is no holiday prank. On Saturday, the inelegantly named comet 41P/Tuttle-Giacobini-Kresák will make its closest flyby of Earth since its discovery in 1858. There’s no need to worry about it hitting Earth: The comet will zoom past at a safe distance of around 13.2 million miles, about 50 times the moon’s distance, EarthSky.org reports. While the comet will … Continue reading
Green Comet to Flyby over North Pole on April 1st
Green comet 41P/Tuttle-Giacobini-Kresak is flying over Earth’s North Pole this week where sky watchers can find it all night long not far from the bowl of the Big Dipper. At closest approach on April 1st it will be just 21 million km from Earth–an easy target for backyard telescopes and almost visible to the naked eye. Amateur astronomer Yasushi Aoshima … Continue reading