ITHACA, N.Y. (WHCU) – A spectacle in the sky some 50 thousand years in the making.

According to NASA, Comet 2022 E3 ZTF, distinct for its green tint and appearance of two tails, will make its closest approach to Earth tonight. The comet is named for the Zwicky Transient Facility in California where it was discovered in early March of last year. Cornell Professor of Astronomy Phil Nicholson told WHCU more about the comet’s trajectory.

Nicholson said to take calculations on orbit with a grain of salt, as gravitational pull from nearby planets can alter the orbit. Still, that doesn’t diminish the unique opportunity to observe what no human has likely ever seen.

Don’t pick up your telescope just yet. The movement of the comet makes another technology better suited to view it.

Nicholson says its position near recognizably identifiable things in the sky should make it easy to find.

The comet is best viewed in a clear sky when the moon is not up high.

Photo courtesy of NASA