Comet Tsuchinshan-Atlas makes an appearance in the western night sky as amateur photographers Nolan Letellier, left, and Link Jackson observe on a ridge near the Dry Creek Trailhead in Boise, Idaho. Monday, Oct. 14, 2024 (AP Photo/Kyle Green)AP
A rare comet - the brightest one of the year - is creating quite a buzz with its appearance in our skies this month.
So why are so many people having trouble seeing it?
Don‘t take it personally if you haven’t been able to spot Comet Tsuchinshan-Atlas in the last week while it has been making its closest approach to Earth. Clouds, moonlight and a relatively short viewing window at dusk have all been factors that are hampering skywatchers. Not to mention that as it gets higher in the sky each night this week, it also gets a little fainter.
Still, we all know people who’ve managed to capture this fuzzy-tailed comet in an iPhone pic or have spotted it with a pair of binoculars.
Consider that you might just be looking at the wrong place in the sky. The National Weather Service office in Grand Rapids put out a helpful guide on how to spot this comet - which won’t be returning to our skies for another 80,000 years. It will still be visible for a few more nights.
“The quiet weather and mostly clear skies the next few nights will give you the opportunity to see Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS through the 21st,” NWS meteorologists said. “Look at the image from Sky and Telescope as a guide to view the comet.”
The comet typically appears about 45 minutes after sunset, so check your phone or weather app for the sunset time in your area.
Use this image from Sky and Telescope as a guide to track and view the comet.NWS and Sky and Telescope
Need an app to give you extra help in finding it? Apps like Stellarium can assist in locating it, skywatchers say, and then you can take a phone photo in that area and see if it shows up that way a little more clearly. Or point your binoculars at that spot.
NASA has called this comet an ancient celestial traveler.
After its quick visit, Comet Tsuchinshan-Atlas will head back to the far corners of our solar system.
Some scientists and astronomers were not even sure this rare comet would appear for us, after it was first spotted as an incoming visitor last year.
From a recent NASA blog: “The comet successfully made its closest transit past the Sun on Sept. 27. Scientists surmised it might well break up during that pass, its volatile and icy composition unable to withstand the intense heat of our parent star, but it survived more or less intact – and is now on track to come within approximately 44 million miles of Earth on Oct. 12."