ScienceAlert... Over the next few weeks, one of the most beautiful comets we’ve ever discovered, Comet Catalina, will pass by Earth in what’s expected to be its first and only visit to the inner Solar System.
And while its closest flyby for those in the Northern Hemisphere will be on 17 January 2016, you might want to stash some binoculars in your bag on New Year’s Day - on 1 January, Comet Catalina is expected to move within 0.4 degrees (less than the apparent width of the Moon) of Arcturus - one of the brightest stars in the sky. If ever there were a ridiculous space photography moment, this is it.