Comet 2017 K2 ‘The Record-Breaker’ makes its closest approach to Earth on July 14, 2022

Comet 2017 K2 ‘The Record-Breaker’ makes its closest approach to Earth on July 14, 2022

Comet 2017 K2 (PanSTARRS) – dubbed ‘The Record-Breaker’ – will make its close approach to Earth on July 14, 2022, and then reach perihelion (the closest point to the Sun) on December 19, close to the orbit of Mars. The comet is record-breaking because it was already becoming active when it was discovered in 2017 under the feeble glow of the distant Sun.

Comet K2 ‘The Record-Breaker’ – farthest active inbound comet ever seen

Comet K2 ‘The Record-Breaker’ – farthest active inbound comet ever seen

Hubble Space Telescope has photographed the farthest active inbound comet ever seen, at a whopping distance of 2.4 billion km (1.5 billion miles) from the Sun (beyond Saturn's orbit). The comet is record-breaking because it is already becoming active under the…