The rock and ice ball, whose exact size is unknown, has been named after Japanese amateur astronomer Hideo Nishimura, who first spotted it on August 12th.
Nicolas Biver, an astrophysicist from the Paris Observatory, stated that it is rare for comets to reach their highest visibility shortly after being discovered.
In a statement to AFP, he said, "Most of them are discovered months or even years before they get closest to the Sun. A comet only passes by the Sun once every 437 years."
When comets approach the Sun, the heat causes the icy core to turn into dust and gas, creating a long tail.
Sunlight reflecting off this tail allows us to see comets from Earth.
Named scientifically as C/2023 P1, Nishimura will pass closest to the Sun on September 17th. Biver mentioned that it will be 33 million kilometers away from the Sun, which is less than one-fourth the distance between Earth and the Sun.
The comet will then safely pass by Earth from a distance of 125 million kilometers.
