--- title: "Exploding “Devil Comet” Flying Past Earth Has Spiral Core" description: "A huge, volatile comet called the \"devil comet\" is flying its way past Earth for the first time since 1954 and is currently visible in the night sky. Officially named 12P/Pons-Brookes, the periodically exploding comet earned its infernal moniker for the \"horns\" it sprouted after a recent eruption left it with a pair of distinctly […]" date: "2024-03-20" modified: "2024-03-20" authors: - name: "Frank Landymore" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/flandymore" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/devil-comet-spiral-core" categories: - "Off-World" - "Space" tags: - "Comets" - "NASA" - "the digest" --- # Exploding “Devil Comet” Flying Past Earth Has Spiral Core ![The comet 12P/Pons-Brookes is returning for the first time since 1954, and astrophotographers are already discovering new things about it.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## Handsome Devil A huge, volatile space object called the "devil comet" is flying its way past Earth for the first time since 1954 — and is currently visible in the night sky. Officially named 12P/Pons-Brookes, the periodically exploding comet earned its infernal moniker for the "horns" it sprouted after a recent eruption left it with a pair of distinctly shaped tails of gas and ice spewing into space. Now, [new images]() of the devil comet reveal a feature no one had ever noticed before: a spiral of gas raging in the comet's core. The images were captured by Norwegian astrophotographer Jan Erik Vallestad on March 9. As [reported by *SpaceWeather*](), the spiral wasn't easily visible until Vallestad carefully processed the images, which thankfully were taken at just the right settings. "The image has been processed in Pixinsight with moderate stretching to reveal structure in the core," he told *SpaceWeather*. "This is doable because the core itself was not 'blown out' (saturated) in my original data." ## Mystic Spiral Comets are typically composed of ice, rock and dust. They gain their distinctive luminous halo from orbiting the Sun, which heats up these icy bodies so that they spew luminous gases into the void. As they continue their orbit, the trailing gases form a large tail that can stretch for millions of miles. 12P/Pons-Brookes is slightly unique in that it is believed to be cryovolcanic, regularly erupting as plumes of its pressurized, frozen interior bursts through fissures on its surface. As the comet spins, these exhausts of cold gas could be swirling together to form the apparent spiral at the comet's center. ## Sun and Comet Align Thankfully, you don't need to be an astronomy wizard to witness this comet's rare visit. Right now, those in the northern hemisphere can see it with simple binoculars or a telescope near the Pisces constellation. By next month, 12P/Pons-Brookes should be visible to the naked eye. There are two notable dates to keep in mind. According [to NASA](), there's a good chance the comet will be visible during the total eclipse on April 8 — a rare and unusual cosmic coincidence. And on April 21, the comet will reach perihelion, when it will be at its closest point to the Sun and be at its brightest. So mark your calendars and keep your eyes peeled, folks: with the devil's luck, we'll get to see a comet and a full-blown eclipse at the same time. **More on space:** *[Star Explosion Will Be Visible in Night Sky, Astronomers Say]()* ## Author At Futurism, my work has often centered on bringing a sense of clarity and insight to complex topics ranging from the regulation of emerging technologies to the esoteric ideologies of Silicon Valley executives, while striving not to lose the poetic sense of awe inspired by often-obscure fields like astrophysics and quantum computing. I broke the story of CNET using AI to produce articles that turned out to be riddled with factual errors and plagiarism — a dam-breaking inflection point, as I've reported, that's inspired copycats and endless discourse while beguiling stakeholders ranging from tech giants to purveyors of spam around the web. My work at Futurism has been cited by publications including CBS News, the Los Angeles Times, Vice, Gizmodo, Engadget, the Verge, and Vanity Fair. I grew up in locales ranging from India to China, and now live in the exotic suburbs of Virginia. In my free time, I'm an avid reader of weird sci-fi literature, an aficionado of East Asian cinema, and, regrettably, a relapsed gamer. Allegedly, I’m working on a debut novel, currently untitled. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()