The coming weeks will be decisive for comet C/2024G3 (ATLAS), which will approach the Sun on January 13. The chances of survival are slim.
The distance between the comet and the Sun will be 58 million km, which is four times less than the distance between the Sun and Mercury. At such proximity, the surface temperature of the Parker spacecraft's heat shield reaches 1000 degrees.
The huge temperature differences inside the icy core should lead to its cracking, emission of fountains of gas and dust, disintegration into fragments that will rapidly evaporate. Frankly, the chances of the comet surviving are slim.
The comet will be visible to Earth's inhabitants only if it survives the encounter with the Sun; it cannot be seen in the daytime sky now. If it survives the approach, there is a chance to see it from Earth in the third decade of January. It will be best seen by those in the Southern Hemisphere. The coming weeks will show whether the comet survives.
Comet C/2024G3 (ATLAS) was discovered on April 5, 2024, by the telescopes of the Atlas project. At the end of October, another comet, C/2024S1 (ATLAS), observed from the Southern Hemisphere, perished due to high temperatures and tidal forces of the Sun. The approaching comet will probably meet the same fate.
Read more on the topic:
Comet C/2024 S1 is rapidly gaining brightness and "growing" a tail before meeting the Sun
Crimean amateur astronomer discovers new comet in the solar system
