OPINION (ETH) – Astronomers have discovered the largest known comet, and it’s about a thousand times more massive than others. According to a report from CNN, Comet Bernardinelli-Bernstein, so named because it was found by University of Pennsylvania department of physics and astronomy graduate student Pedro Bernardinelli and Professor Gary Bernstein, is between 62 to 124 miles (100 to 200 kilometers) across.
The team announced the discovery in June. This unusual comet will make its closest approach to our sun in 2031, but you’ll likely need a large amateur telescope to see it. The giant comet, also known as C/2014 UN271, is from the outskirts of our solar system and has been making its way toward our sun for millions of years.
This is also the most distant comet to be discovered on its inbound journey, which will provide scientists a chance to observe and study it for years to come. We first reported this comet last month and it didn’t take long for USA Today to quickly flag our post on Instagram as “misleading information” claiming that we insinuated that the comet was going to strike the earth when in fact we NEVER stated such a claim.
Their headline read: But some on social media claim a much more alarming celestial body is also headed our way. “A 62-mile wide ‘Mega-Comet’ has just entered our solar system,” reads a graphic shared in a July 22 Instagram post. According to California News-Times, Comet Bernardinelli-Comet Bernardinelli is now about 1.8 billion miles (3 billion kilometers) away — about the distance from the Sun to Uranus. —
And at the closest point in 2031, it will be a little longer than Saturn’s distance to the Sun. “We have probably discovered the largest comet we have ever seen, or at least a comet larger than a well-studied comet, and do it fast enough to see people evolve as they approach and warm up. I have the privilege of being captured, “Bernstein said in a statement. .. “It hasn’t visited the planet for over 3 million years.”
