A chilled guest from the furthest reaches of the solar system is predicted to fly past Earth and the sun next month; it may be visible to the untrained human eye. This distant visitor is a comet that may have previously passed by Earth 50,000 ago.

The comet, which was discovered in March 2022, is currently traveling toward the inner solar system and recently passed close to Jupiter's orbit. The upcoming flyby could be a once-in-a-lifetime celestial event that we get to see.

The comet, designated C/2022 E3 ZTF, has a greenish coma, which is the hazy envelope that surrounds a comet's nucleus, and a tail of dust and ion particles that has a yellow tint. It may be possible to observe C/2022 E3 ZTF without binoculars or a telescope under completely dark skies with little moonlight or streetlight.

The comet will continue to be visible a little after midnight despite being close to the sun throughout the upcoming weeks, at least for star gazers in the northern hemisphere.

Currently hurtling toward the Northern Crown, C/2022 E3 ZTF will have approached Polaris by the end of the month while growing brighter and nearer to Earth. It will once more be visible to viewers south of the equator when it rises beyond their northern horizon in early February.

On February 2, the comet will be the closest to the planet. It will be moving incredibly swiftly since it is in a retrograde orbit, which travels in the opposite direction from Earth's orbit. Attempt to see it with your unaided eye, or else use a good pair of binoculars.