AUSTIN, Texas — The past few nights, stargazers may have noticed an addition to the Texas sky. Now through the end of October, a comet labeled Tsuchinshan-ATLAS or (C/2023 A3) will be a temporary visitor to our regular starry skies.
This comet only passes by Earth once every 80,000 years, so be sure to get a good look at it while it is here!
According to skyandtelescope.org, "The comet is currently visible in the western sky about 2½ fists to the upper right of Venus and dimly visible with the naked eye and binoculars as soon as 45 minutes after local sunset. You'll see it best between 1 and 2 hours after sunset as the sky gets darker."
From Monday, Oct. 15 through Friday, Oct. 18, skies are expected to be very clear day and night, so there should be no difficulty viewing. However, as time goes on, the comet will appear dimmer and higher towards the end of the month.
Plenty of Central Texans have already seen the comet, sharing their photos on social media:
