A massive comet, twice the size of Mount Everest, will be passing by Earth for the first time in seven decades. It has been named "devil comet" due to the formation of two "horns" made up of gas and ice, according to ABC News. Formally known as Comet 12/P Pons-Brooks, the celestial object doesn't pose any threat to Earth. It will, however, be visible to the naked eye in the spring when it reaches its closest point to Earth, the outlet further said.
Why is it called "devil comet"?
Comets are large objects made of dust and ice that orbit the Sun. Best known for their long, streaming tails, these ancient objects are leftovers from the formation of the solar system billions of years ago.
The tails appear on a comet due to rapidly burning of gases as they come close to the Sun. But 12/P Pons-Brooks has been unusually bright compared to others.
This happened because of two major eruptions on the comet - one in July and the other one earlier this month.
"These outbursts have brought this object from being dim enough that you can only really see it with big professional telescopes to, in a couple of cases, something people can see from their backyard," Dr Theodore Kareta, a postdoctoral researcher at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, told ABC News.
"There aren't that many comets that have outbursts, these sudden increases in brightness, that are so strong, and even fewer that have them a couple of times during one orbit. It seems like Pons-Brooks ... is just really active," he added.
These explosions gave fuzzy cloud around the nucleus of the comet an unusual shape - like two "devil horns" giving the celestial object its name.
When will it pass by Earth?
Comet 12/P Pons-Brooks will reach perihelion, the point closest to the Sun, on April 21, 2024. More than a month after that - on June 2, 2024 - the pass will pass closest to the Earth, said NBC News.
Depending on the conditions, the brightness of the comet will make it visible to people even with naked eye.
It is known as a periodic comet with an orbital period of roughly 71 years.
Will there be a 'Deep Impact'?
Not really. Scientists say the comet will pass close to the Earth because of its ominous trajectory but will then be catapulted back into the solar system, and won't make its cosmic comeback tour until the year 2095.
Comet 12/P Pons-Brooks was discovered in 1812 by a French astronomer, Jean-Louis Pons. The object was observed again in 1883 by astronomer William Brooks.
