Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF)
Dubbed the "Green Comet", this celestial wonderer captured everyone's attention when its journey through the cosmos crossed path with Earth. Check out more about Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF)
- Object type: Long-period comet
- Designation: C/2022 E3 (ZTF)
- Hemisphere: Northern
- Constellation: Auriga (in this photo)
A Cosmic wanderer: Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF)
C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is a long-period comet that originated from the Oort cloud. It was first discovered in early March 2022 by astronomers using the wide-field survey camera at the Zwicky Transient Facility (hence the “ZTF” in its designation).
According to astronomers’ estimations, the comet has an orbital period of approximately 50,000 years ago, meaning that Neanderthals were still walking the Earth last time the comet came close to us. How cool is that?
This cosmic wanderer was informally nicknamed “Green Comet” due to the bright green glow around its nucleus, which is caused by the effect of sunlight on diatomic carbon and cyanogen. The green hue is typical of comets with a high gas content.
The comet nucleus was estimated to be about a kilometre in size, rotating every 8.7 hours, while its tail of dust and gas extended for millions of kilometres. The comet’s brighter greenish coma, short broad dust tail, and long faint ion tail stretch across a 2.5-degree wide field-of-view. Check out the image below to find out the comet's main features.
Equipment
- Mount: ZWO AM5
- Telescope: Redcat 51
- Camera: ZWO ASI294MC-Pro
- Filter: Optolong L-Pro
- Guiding: William Optics 32
- Guide camera: ZWO ASI220MM Mini
- Acquisition: ZWO AsiAir Plus
Acquisition details
- Integration: 3 hours
- Processing: PixInsight
- Location: Luxembourg