How to see Comet SWAN above your house tonight
The newly-discovered Comet SWAN is burning brightly over UK skies this week.
In fact, experts reckon it’ll be the brightest comet we’ll see in all of 2020 and now is the best time to see it.
The comet will appear as a bright green dot in the night sky with a long tail stretching out behind it. You should be able to see it with the naked eye but for a better look grab a pair of binoculars or a telescope.
Although the comet is bright, it is fading as it moves further away from us. Astronomers believe we’ll be able to see it through the end of May and into early June.
‘Presently, the comet is circumpolar from the UK and is visible after sunset above the north-north-western horizon and in the pre-dawn north-north-eastern sky,’ wrote the team at Astronomy Now. ‘It’s slightly better placed in the pre-dawn.’
The only issue you’ll face with trying to spot the comet close to sunset or sunrise is the remaining glare from the sun interfering with your view.
Comet SWAN will be noticeable in the dark night sky because of its greenish tinge and long, blue tail. Comets have that greenish tinge because they’re mostly made of ice as opposed to asteroids which are predominantly rock.
The comet is passing Earth at a distance of 75 million miles away.
Where does Comet SWAN come from?
Not a great deal is known about the comet as it was only discovered very recently.
It was found on April 11, 2020, by an amateur astronomer from Australia named Michael Mattiazzo.
He was analysing data from Nasa’s Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) – specifically images from the SWAN camera (Solar Wind Anisotropies instrument) – when he found it.
Mattiazzo noticed a comet that suddenly appeared in images that were taken on March 25, 2020. It was given the name Comet SWAN after the device used to find it.
Astronomers are now hard at work trying to learn more about the dazzling green comet. In the meantime, we recommend getting outside tonight and trying to spot it for yourself.