A rare comet that only completes its orbit around the Sun every 3,806 years was spotted in the southwest of Puerto Rico on Saturday and will be visible again next Wednesday, according to experts from the Caribbean Astronomy Society (SAC) and the Astronomy Society of Puerto Rico (SAPR).
Comet C/2023 H2 (Lemmon), which was discovered in April of this year from the Lemmon Observatory in Arizona, is currently at its closest approach to Earth, making it visible to those in the area. While not visible to the naked eye, it can be seen through a telescope.
According to Professor Cesar López of SAPR, the comet will be visible at mid-altitude towards the southwest at the beginning of the night on November 15th. The SAC noted that the comet was not very far from the star Okab in the constellation of Águila on the night it was first spotted in Puerto Rico.
The comet, passing about 18 million miles from Earth, is considered relatively close in astronomical terms for a comet. Through telescopes, Comet H2 Lemmon appears as a dimmed star wrapped in a “cloud of gas and dust,” emitting a greenish glow due to gases such as diatomic carbon.
Eddie Irizarry, a scientific communicator at the SAC, described the experience of observing the comet, saying, “When photographing it and then obtaining a new image, just two minutes later, it was notable that the comet was already located passing in front of a different star.” The SAC also highlighted that two other comets, 12P/Pons-Brooks and C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS), will be approaching Earth next year, and may also be visible with binoculars or even the naked eye from dark places.