December 25, 2021
On the day you were born, the universe was already ancient beyond measure — and yet, in all those billions of years, it had never once...
The Tail of a Christmas Comet
Birthday · December 25, 2021
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APOD published December 25, 2021. Credit: The tail of a comet. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
The tail of a comet streams across this three degree wide telescopic field of view captured under dark Namibian skies on December 21. In outburst only a few days ago and just reaching naked eye visibility Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) is this year's brightest comet. Binoculars will make the diffuse comet easier to spot though, close to the western horizon after sunset. Details revealed in the sharp image show the comet's coma with a greenish tinge, and follow the interaction of the comet's ion tail with magnetic fields in the solar wind. After passing closest to Earth on December 12 and Venus on December 18, Comet Leonard is heading toward perihelion, its closest approach to the Sun on January 3rd. Appearing in late December's beautiful evening skies Comet Leonard has also become known as 2021's Christmas Comet. Launch Update: James Webb Space Telescope
Image credit: The tail of a comet