
Over the next two weeks, the Lovejoy Comet (C/2014 Q2) is
making an appearance in our early-evening skies.
If you are fortunate to have a dark sky and
good vision, it is dimly visible to the naked eye.
Otherwise
we strongly recommend using binoculars or low-power, wide field telescope.
It is a long-period comet with an orbit of
about 11,500 years.
So if you happen to
miss it, it will return in about 8,000 years.
Like most comets, it has a greenish head.
This is the result of diatomic carbon
molecules (C
2) fluorescing in ultraviolet sunlight while it travels
through the near-vacuum of space.
The tail, which always points away from the
sun, is tinted blue from the fluorescing of carbon monoxide ions (CO+).
Its overall whitish appearance is from dust
reflecting the sunlight.
It is 44
million miles away and traveling 3° overhead a night which is fast enough so
that it may move during a viewing session.
It will be nearest to the sun on January 30th, a mere 120 million miles
away.
The comet is named after its
discoverer, Australian amateur astronomer Terry Lovejoy.
He discovered it on August 17, 2014.
It is the 5
th comet he has
discovered from his Brisbane, Queensland home.
There are numerous web-sites providing information on how to locate the Lovejoy
comet.
You can find them by typing “Lovejoy
Comet 2014” in your search engine.
Photo
by Paul Stewart,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C/2014_Q2_%28Lovejoy%29
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