The Devil's Comet, Bigger than Mount Everest, Is Approaching Earth

Illustration of comets sliding near the earth (photo: dock. NASA)

JAKARTA - A comet twice the size of Mount Everest has exploded while orbiting the sun. This comet is called the Devil's Comet because of its terrifying size and the horns that accompany it.

Currently, the Devil's Comet is hurtling towards Earth, news that actually caused a stir. However, a researcher said that this comet does not pose any threat.

Quoting from Insider, Postdoctoral Researcher Teddy Kareta at the Lowell Observatory said that the Devil's Comet is not actually heading towards Earth. This comet is still about one and a half astronomical units away, even farther than the distance between the Earth and the Sun.

Even though this comet will be visible to the naked eye next spring, that doesn't mean it will be very close to Earth. Kareta said, "That's because (this comet) generally looks very bright."

This Devil's Comet has attracted the attention of scientists because of the brightness that accompanies it. Every time an explosion appears on the comet, tons of gas and dust will be born and form a horn.

When this horn is formed, the Devil's Comet will become extremely radiant and fade again afterward. There is a theory that this comet contains ice so it will evaporate easily when exposed to heat from the sun.

However, this comet rarely explodes when it is close to the sun, only twice in five years. Instead, the comet exploded more frequently the farther it was from the sun, disproving that theory.

Until now, scientists still question the trigger for the explosion of this 19.4-mile comet. Therefore, quite a few are looking forward to the peak brightness of the Devil's Comet which is predicted to occur in April 2024.

Reportedly, this comet, which last appeared 71 years ago, will approach Earth next year, precisely in June. After that estimated time, earthlings could see points of light produced by the Devil's Comet in the night sky.