[February Edit] The comet has now moved! It’s now visible in the evening sky and we’ve been able to capture it in our main telescope most nights!
A newly-discovered comet will be making an appearance in our night sky! How can you view it and what can you expect?
Well, it’s honestly hard to say, but we have some hope about C/2022 E3 (ZTF)! The night of Saturday, January 28th is going to be our first shot at seeing the comet through our telescope during our regular business hours.
However, you should be able to view the comet basically any pre-dawn morning between now and some time in February, assuming the comet plays nice and puts on a noticeable tail. While it’s being stated that this is a “naked eye” comet, it will best be viewed by binoculars or a telescope.
You should also know that comets can be pretty diabolical. Their visibility depends almost entirely on their willingness to play along, and they’re not always excited about that. We’ve been wow’d and disappointed before. You never know what to expect, but it’s worth it to try to view it because comets can be breathtaking.
Some comets have long and exciting tails, like the famous Halley’s Comet, or even Comet NEOWISE in July 2020. Some comets can be a bit of a bummer and just refuse to spew the dust and gasses that make them shine, leaving them as small green blobs only viewable in a telescope.
Comet NEOWISE, July 2020 - Photo Credit Seth Duncan
The moon, beautiful as it is, can also play spoiler to our night time viewing. A full moon can make night-sky viewing almost as difficult as it would be if you were in the middle of a well-lit parking lot. Luckily we won’t be contending with the moon on the night of January 28th.
There will be other viewing opportunities (and we do stress that these are merely opportunities) on the following weekend, Fri/Sat February 3rd/4th (which may be competing with the Full Moon) and February 10th/11th.
You should also know that you’re welcome out to the observatory grounds any time, even outside business hours.
If you have any questions feel free to leave a voicemail or text us at 316-247-0372.
Note: Reservations are not required to visit the observatory.
You can find more info about comet C/2022 E3 at space.com