Sky-gazers will get to see a recently discovered comet, known as C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, as it makes its closest approach of Earth on Saturday. This is a must-see event since it may be the last time the comet will be seen in the night sky for another 80,000 years.
On September 27, the comet successfully reached its closest point to the sun in its orbital path around the parent star, perihelion. It was visible for those in the Southern Hemisphere in September and early October. According to NASA, it makes its way out of the inner solar system and will be visible to those in the Northern Hemisphere in mid-October through early November.
NASA says the comet will come within about 44 million miles (nearly 71 million kilometers) of Earth on Saturday. The comet is making its first documented flyby of our planet. With its 80,000-year orbit, the comet would have been last seen from Earth at the time of the Neanderthals.
Those looking to catch a glimpse of the once-in-a-lifetime event will want to look in the western part of the night sky, shortly after sunset, according to EarthSky.
Bill Cooke, lead of NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, recommends a pair of binoculars for a better view of the comet.
"It's not going to zing across the sky like a meteor. It will just appear to hang there, and it will slowly change position from night to night," Cooke said. "If you can see (the comet) with your unaided eye, (using) the binoculars will knock your socks off."
For more celestial events, here are upcoming opportunities to sky-gaze:
A second comet, known as Comet C/2024 S1 (ATLAS), may make its appearance in the night sky in late October, according to EarthSky.
Meanwhile, sky-gazers can expect a busy meteor shower season to close out 2024. Here are peak dates for upcoming celestial activity, according to the American Meteor Society:
Orionids: October 20-21
Southern Taurids: November 4-5
Northern Taurids: November 11-12
Leonids: November 17-18
Geminids: December 13-14
Ursids: December 21-22
Source: ABC7