Already visible from Earth with binoculars, ISON will get up close and personal with the sun on Thanksgiving Day.
Already visible from Earth with a pair of powerful binoculars, Comet ISON will make its closest approach to the sun on November 28, 2013, when it will come within 1,150,000 miles of it.
If ISON survives its close call with the sun's extreme heat, NASA expects the comet to put on a spectacular show for Earth during the first weeks of December as it continues streaking through the sky, before making its closest approach to our planet on December 26, 2013 at the relatively close cosmic distance of 39.9 million miles.
It appears as if ISON may already be falling apart a bit. But if it survives the flyby, the potential exists for this to be one of the brighter comets of the past century.
You can even stage your own Thanksgiving Day comet watch with an ISON tracking app, aptly called "Comet Watch," which is available for free for the iPhone or iPad.