Comet 2022 E3 (ZTF) is of special interest this January as at the time of writing (mid-November) it appears well on-course to be an easy binocular object and perhaps a marginal naked-eye comet.

Images of comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko from Rosetta’s navigation camera have taken on a darker, more “atmospheric” tone in recent days and the latest view is no exception.

This week marks the pinnacle of the professional careers of many scientists, when the European Space Agency plans to put down a three-legged robotic lander on a comet, a risky first-of-a-kind endeavor that could rewrite textbooks on the history of the solar system.