Mother Of Dragons Comet:
A rare, formerly-horned comet that astronomers have dubbed the “Mother of Dragons” is now visible after dusk in the Northern Hemisphere.
- Mother of Dragons comet is officially known as Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks.
- It is a ‘Halley-type’ comet with an orbital period of roughly 71 years and a nucleus approximately 30 km wide.
- It is composed of ice, dust and rocky material. When it approaches the Sun, heat causes the ice inside the comet to turn from solid to gas.
- It is classified as a Jupiter-family comet, meaning its orbit is influenced by Jupiter’s gravitational pull.
- It typically reaches perihelion (closest approach to the Sun) around the orbit of Mars and can become visible to observers on Earth during its close approach.
- Its closest approach to Earth will occur in June 2024.
