when is the green comet passing earth
Green Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) Recently Passed Earth The green comet in question is Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon), a rare icy visitor glowing with its distinctive green hue due to diatomic carbon in its atmosphere. It made its closest approach to Earth on October 21, 2025 , marking its first visit in over a thousand years and the brightest comet observable from our planet that year.
Key Timeline
- Discovery : Spotted earlier in 2025, captured shining brightly by October 2.
- Perihelion (closest to Sun) : Preceded the Earth flyby, heating up its green-glowing coma.
- Closest to Earth : October 21, 2025 – this was the prime viewing window before it faded and swung back into deep space.
- Return : Not expected for another millennium, making it a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle.
Why Green and How to Spot It
This comet's eerie green color comes from energized gases like C2 and CO, fluorescing under sunlight – a signature of fresh cometary ice untouched for eons. During its peak in late October 2025, it was visible to the naked eye in dark skies, especially pre-dawn in the Northern Hemisphere, with binoculars revealing its tail.
"Comets are quite prevalent, but Comet Lemmon is undoubtedly the most remarkable comet to observe from Earth this year." – Rhonda Stroud, meteor expert.
Other 2026 Comets Trending Now
No major green comet is passing Earth right now (February 2026), but skywatchers are buzzing about upcoming ones:
- C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) : Perihelion April 19-20, closest to Earth April 26-27 at ~44-45 million miles; could shine bright as mag 6 or better, visible binoculars-wide.
- C/2024 E1 (Wierzchos) : Closest February 17, mainly Southern Hemisphere view.
Comet| Peak Date (2026)| Brightness| Best Viewing
---|---|---|---
C/2025 R3 PanSTARRS| Apr 26| Mag 6?| Both hemispheres39
C/2024 E1 Wierzchos| Feb 17| Mag 8.7| Southern3
24P/Schaumasse| Jan 4| Mag 9.8| Both3
TL;DR : The green comet passed Earth last October 2025; check apps like Star Walk for 2026 hopefuls like PanSTARRS.
Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.