comet 12P/Pons-Brooks It will pass close to Earth for the first time in 71 years and will be visible as the Sun darkens, according to NASA. He Devil's Comet It approaches the Sun and reaches its brightest point on April 21; However, Comet Diablo will be closest to Earth on June 2nd, and the next time this astronomical event will be visible will be in 2095. If you'd like to be a part of the trail, I'll show you how to watch it via NASA TV. Online streaming from any digital platform.

But, according to NASA, spotting the comet can be challenging unless you have a perfectly clear view of the horizon an hour after sunset. A few hours after sunset, the comet is invisible. 12P/Pons-Brooks It is a periodic comet that orbits the Sun approximately every 70 years. It was first identified by Jean-Louis Pons in July 1812 and later by William Robert Brooks in 1883, after both discoverers.

The spacecraft's ultraviolet camera NASA's Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory A (STEREO-A) Captured exclusive images Devil's Comet (12P/Ponks-Brooks) During a coronal mass ejection, also called CME (Coronal Mass Ejection)Ahead of its perihelion this Sunday, April 21, it will reach its closest point to the Sun from the constellation Taurus.

Official video of Comet Diablo via NASA STEREO-A

In the video, It was registered on 12th April last, the celestial body can be seen passing Jupiter on its path towards the Sun until impacting with a giant plasma cloud (CME). The crash caused the 12P/Ponks-Brooks to split its tail.

NASA's STEREO-A spacecraft released images of Comet Diablo during its mission. (Video: NASA / VIDEOFROMSPACE)

This is not the first time an event of this magnitude has been recorded in our solar system. A similar thing happened to Comet Nishimura in September 2023, when a CME swept off its tail, also known as the “Green Comet,” as it orbited the Sun, indicating that Comet Diablo may suffer the same fate.

Remember that on Sunday, April 21, comet Diablo will be visible to the naked eye in many countries around the world, especially in the Northern Hemisphere such as the United States, Mexico and Canada. No need to have special equipment. However, if you have professional binoculars or binoculars, you'll have a better chance of spotting it.

It should be noted that NASA's STEREO-A Space Solar Observatory is closely monitoring Comet Diablo 12P/Pons-Brooks and other space events for study. So new movies are likely to come in next few days.

Where to watch NASA TV live?

NASATV It will broadcast its space missions for free among other events of scientific interest. Content can be viewed from within the app NASA+ and social networks YouTube, Facebook and Twitch. Here we are sharing links where you can enter streaming.

How to watch NASA+ via streaming?

Since 2023, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration has operated a streaming service called NASA+, available on iOS, Android, Roku, Apple TV and devices.

Why is Ponce-Brookes called the Devil's Comet?

Well, at the end of July 2023, the comet exploded, ejecting huge amounts of gas and dust, increasing its brightness by about 100 times, jumping from magnitude 17 to magnitude 12 overnight. Such outbreaks are random, unpredictable and not entirely common. . The researchers noted that Ponce-Brooks in particular exhibited such behavior several times before and after one orbit.

The explosion distorted the coma into a horseshoe or horn shape with a dark center and bright wings or tips. Hence many media outlets nicknamed it the Devil's Comet. (Some have also called it the Millennium Falcon Comet Star Wars) after the explosion, the comet calmed down again and its brightness remained constant until earlier this month, when it flared up again, bringing back the horns.

Astronomers aren't entirely sure what causes the horns, but they think it could be because the comet is spewing gas and dust in equal measure. Perhaps there is an area of ​​the surface that is not ventilated, so to speak, while the areas on either side are bright and it remains dark. Or even a shadow effect where dense material or terrain in the comet's center appears to block some of the brighter objects behind it from our view. Whatever the reason, it is scientifically interesting because it is intrinsic to the comet and its unique structure.