The Christmas "comet Virtanen - a green" star "the size of the moon is approaching the UAE.
For the first time in 400 years, at a record short distance from Earth - 11.5 million km (30 times more than the distance to the Moon) - the Christmas "comet Virtanen will fly: from December 14 to December 18, it will be visible through binoculars in the sky of Arabia or even with the naked eye.
Astronomers describe the comet as a “blurry green star,” which can equal in diameter to the moon. Virtana, called the brightest comet, is the first in the last few years that the inhabitants of the Northern Hemisphere will be able to observe with the naked eye. Of course, it is impossible to miss such an event, since in the next two centuries Virtanen will not fly closer to Earth than 323 million km.
Comet Virtanen is a short-period one. Flies around the Sun between the orbits of the Earth and Jupiter. Makes a full turn in 5.4 years. The diameter of its core is estimated by astronomers at 1.2 kilometers. Comet Virtanen is called Christmas, because it is visible in the sky until the end of December, and sometimes in the first days of the new year.
The comet approximation coincides in time with the maximum activity of the Geminid meteor shower, which is called the "king" of meteor showers. On Friday, December 14, from 10 p.m., the Dubai astronomical group will camp in the Al Qudra area, where it will be possible to observe the stars and the naked eye, and with a telescope. Tickets cost 120 dirhams for adults and 70 for children.
