FILE VIDEO: NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick got a front row seat to Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS from the cupola on the International Space Station. (Video courtesy: NASA / Matthew Dominick)
A recently discovered comet is making a bright debut on Earth this month, and with some effort, skygazers might be able to see Comet ATLAS.
Comet C/2024 G3 ATLAS was discovered in April 2024 using the Asteroid Terrestial-Impact Last Alert System or ATLAS.
As a long-period comet, Comet ATLAS takes a long time to complete an orbit of the Sun. Astronomers estimate its orbital period is about 160,000 years.
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According to the Planetary Society, the Southern Hemisphere had the best view of the comet after sunset earlier this month, but now the Northern Hemisphere may get its shot.
NASA Astronaut Don Petit captured an image on Saturday of the comet from his view 200 miles above Earth on the International Space Station.
Comet 2024-G3 (Atlas) seen from the International Space Station on Jan. 11, 2025.
“It is totally amazing to see a comet from orbit. Atlas C2024-G3 is paying us a visit,” Petit wrote on X.
Comet ATLAS reached perihelion, its closest point to the Sun, on Jan. 13. From now on, it will get dimmer in the night sky each day.
The view for those of us down on Earth won’t be as clear as an astronaut in space. Weather, including the ongoing California wildfire smoke, could obscure the view for many.
Experts with Sky & Telescope magazine say using binoculars or a telescope at mid-northern latitudes might be your best chance to see Comet ATLAS, but you need an unobstructed view of the southwestern sky.