Hubble Telescope detects largest comet ever
The largest comet ever seen is moving towards Earth at a speed of 35,405 km per hour. The mass of this comet is about 500 trillion tonnes. Its icy nucleus is 128 km wide, which is 50 times larger than the centers of other known comets. But there is no need to worry about an impact with Earth. Because the US space agency NASA believes that it will not come closer than about 1.60 billion km from the Sun.
The comet, named C/2014 UN271, was first seen more than a decade ago in November 2010, the Independent reported. At that time it was at a distance of 4.82 billion km from the Sun. It was traveling from the edge of the solar system towards its center. Its mass is 100,000 times larger than that of other comets that are usually found closer to the Sun.
Hubble Space Telescope reveals size
Scientists using telescopes on Earth and in space have been monitoring it since then. They believe that in 2031 its journey will end at a point as far away as Saturn from us. Scientists watching it knew that it was a giant comet, but the most recent estimate of its giant size has been made from pictures taken by the Hubble Space Telescope.
The size of the comet is very difficult to determine, because there are many dust particles around it, due to which it is very difficult to see. But, scientists found it by looking closely at the bright dot in the center of the comet and using computer models. This comet is billions of years old and is a remnant of the early days of our solar system.
