A massive comet — so large that scientists had previously mistaken it for a dwarf planet — is hurtling through space toward our solar system and is expected to arrive in about 10 years, new research revealed.
The Bernardinelli-Bernstein comet is an estimated to be 60-120 miles across, 1,000 times larger than a traditional comet, astronomers said when its discovery was first announced in June. It is arguably the largest comet discovered in modern times, scientists said.
The comet, however, poses no threat to the Earth. It will pass the sun at its closest in 2031 at a distance of 10.71 astronomical units (au), putting it just beyond the orbit of Saturn.
The comet’s journey began an estimated 40,000 au from the sun, deep in the mysterious Oort Cloud.
nypost.com/2021/10/02/comet-as-large-as-small-planet-barreling-toward-solar-system/