The brightest comet of 2021 has disintegrated. This happened as the comet approached the sun at perihelion. Reports have suggested this must have happened on January 3, 2022. The remnants of the comet during its process of disintegration have not only faded away, but are now also stripped of its two most crucial parts, namely the nucleus and its coma. So do you remember the brightest comet discovered in 2021 that left a mark on science enthusiasts? If not, read below to learn more.
Our brightest comet of the past year has disintegrated. #CometLeonard has not only faded, but is now missing its two most important parts: its core and its coma. Read more about the demise of Comet Leonard here:
Michael Mattiazzo pic.twitter.com/FemkFBeiAR
— EarthSky (@earthskyscience) March 22, 2022
Legacy of the comet
Comet Leonard, as its name goes, was quite far from the Sun when it was first discovered. It was first identified by one Gregory Leonard, after whom the comet is named. Gregory saw the comet as it approached Jupiter. He had tried that with the help of large telescopes. Because comets are extremely unpredictable, it had held its course until November, after which it was speculated to disintegrate.
This was confirmed when amateur researchers adept at tracking the comets’ whereabouts, but with acute tracking and imaging, confirmed it was behaving unusually, including the planet’s brightness to be reduced and the head of the comets. comet did not appear to be. of the same size, but with reports even suggesting that the comet was shifting from its proposed orbit. Yet this was not strong enough to prove whether the comet actually disintegrated or not.
Disintegration of the comet explained.
Comet Leonard couldn’t get too close to the sun. The distance that the comet had managed to reach was calculated to be about 92 million km. Although it was so bright in its approach that the scientists thought it would survive, unfortunately it didn’t. Fluctuations in the comet’s brightness were reportedly detected on January 3, 2022, and this continued for a period of 3-5 days.
It was a huge challenge for scientists to track the same thing that was now heading towards the southern sky, which was close to the sun. Finally, on February 23, 2022, an image of the comet claimed that there was no condensation and that it had turned into a ghostly streak, confirming its disintegration.