February 2023 is the last month of Summer in the Southern Hemisphere. 

Full Moon is the 6th of February, and the New Moon is the 20th of February.

The buzz around Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) has really hit fever pitch and has been in the media on TV news. It’s been renamed “The Green Comet” but won’t appear green in either binoculars or a telescope. The ghostly green glow (as explained by this BINTEL article) will only become clear in photographs. You can read more about this comet in our BINTEL article here. 

You will struggle to see Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) with just your eyes even under dark skies. You’ll be able to spot it in with almost any binoculars or even a small telescope.  While it’s possible to observe the comet from the start of the month, we’d suggest waiting a week or two before you’ll see it clearly. It’s near Mars on around the 9th of February and in the vicinity of the Great Orion Nebula (M42) towards the end of the month.

Again, the weather continues to be cloudy in several states and while this is frustrating for observing, we wish our friends across the pond in New Zealand all the best as they struggle with historic rains and flooding in many parts of the country.