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Christmas comet promises brightest view in decades

Comet 46P/Wirtenan, nicknamed "The Christmas Comet," will be brightest on the night of Saturday, December 15.
Comet 46P/Wirtanen, nicknamed "The Christmas Comet," is projected to be the brightest on the night of Saturday, December 15.(Photo: Calvin College Dept. of Physics and Astronomy)

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- In the spirit of the giving season, the cosmos has aligned to display the brightest "Christmas Comet" in decades.

Comet 46P/Wirtanen is a periodic orbiting comet, meaning it moves through the outer and inner solar system. Every five and a half years, the comet comes close enough to Earth to view.

"Viewing of a comet really depends on two things," explains Calvin College professor Jason Smolinski. "It depends on how close the comet gets to the sun because the heat from the sun is going to be what makes the nucleus vaporize. And then the proximity of the comet to the earth. On this occasion we have both of those things lining up nicely."

Comet 46P/Wirtanen will be visible Saturday night into Sunday as it comes within 7 million miles of earth. The comet will be visible with the naked eye.

"Objects like this are easier to see if you kind of look off to the side and use your peripheral vision to try to detect that fuzzy brightness in the background," added Smolinski. "So it's kind of focusing your vision on one thing but focusing your attention on another."

Also in the night sky is the Geminid meteor shower. The meteor shower has already passed its peak, but as one of the brightest showers each year, meteors will still be seen this weekend.

"Geminid meteors are often a longer duration and can be quite bright and really exciting to see," said Smolinski.

Look to the east near the Gemini constellation for meteors. The best time to view is around 2 a.m.

The Calvin College observatory will not have public viewing hours this weekend, but will on every Wednesday starting in January.

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