The Brightest Comet of 2025 Is Coming. This is how you can see the Light

Hot on the tail of Quadrantids meteor showerAnother celestial phenomenon is about to arrive: comet Atlas C/2024 G3, which will reach perihelion—the point at which it passes closest to the sun—on January 13. On the same day, we’ll get a closer look. pointing to Earth, and it may become the brightest comet in 2025, a year that will not be visible to the naked eye. Here’s everything you need to know.

C/2024 G3 was discovered on April 5, 2024, by the Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System (Atlas)—a telescope that analyzes the location of asteroids that could hit Earth. Comet comes from The Oort clouda distant region on the edge of the sun that is believed to contain remnants of the material that formed the planets of the solar system.

When comet C/2024 G3 reaches perihelion, it will come within just 13.5 million kilometers of the sun – meaning that Mercury, the closest planet to the sun, orbits the star at a distance of 47 million kilometres. According to the latest calculations reported by and the Planetary SocietyC / 2024 G3 can reach a magnitude of -4.5, which is close to Venus, and is visible to people in the southern part of the world.

But the journey to the sun, so close to the star, raises questions about whether it will survive. Its orbit indicates that it is a very old comet, and this is not its first trip around the sun. In fact, its last passage is estimated to be about 160,000 years ago, which means it may have survived much earlier. “It will be superheated and won’t survive,” says Nick James, head of the comet sector The British Astronomical Association. “But if it does, it could be an interesting feature in the evening sky from the southern hemisphere after perihelion.”

How to See the Number of a Comet

If it survives unscathed, the comet will appear in the southern hemisphere at sunset on January 13. The comet’s atmospheric structure makes it difficult to see for those living in the northern hemisphere—it will appear much lower in the sky later. after sunset or before sunrise, but it can be drowned in the evening.

The comet’s proximity to the sun means spotting it can be dangerous, and James says C/2024 G3 “should only be seen if you’re an experienced observer.” Exposure to the sun without protective equipment can cause permanent eye damage.

It will also be disturbed by the light of the moon, which will be on its wane, which will make it more difficult to see. Seeing the comet with the naked eye in the southern hemisphere may be possible, but binoculars or a telescope may be required.

Those who don’t want to miss the show can follow the comet in pictures from Solar Observations and Heliospheric Observatory Lasco C3 coronagraph, or inquire IAU Minor Planet Center or Comet Observation (COBS) database.

This article appeared first WIRED Italy and translated from Italian.