Astronomers have high hopes that Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be visible in the hour before sunrise on four successive mornings this week.
Astrophysicist and Engineering Lecturer Gihan Weerasekera says Sri Lankans will be able to see the comet tomorrow evening after sunset.
“While it appears as a faint fuzzy dot to the naked eye, a modest telescope or binoculars will reveal its magnificent tail in vivid detail. The comet will be visible 45 minutes to an hour before sunrise in the eastern sky,” he added.
According to the Sri Lanka Astronomical Association, further windows of naked-eye visibility in the evening sky could follow in mid-October.
The Association, citing the Live Science website, which offers science-related news, shared that comet C/2023 A3 is expected to peak in brightness today (Sep 27) when it reaches perihelion, its closest point to the sun on its estimated 80,000-year-long orbit.
Skywatchers in the Northern Hemisphere will be able to glimpse the comet a few degrees above the east-southeast horizon about 30 minutes before sunrise between Friday (Sep 27) and Wednesday (Oct 02).
Perfect mornings to view it include Sunday (Sept 29) and Monday (Sept 30), when C/2023 A3 will be joined by a delicate waning crescent moon.
By Monday (Sep 30), C/2023 A3 will have disappeared into the light of dawn for those in mid-northern latitudes, but anyone close to the equator should still be able to see the comet until October 02.
After that date, the comet will be lost in the sun’s glare, destined to reemerge into the Northern Hemisphere’s night sky around Saturday (Oct 12), when it will be at its closest point to Earth. It will then be positioned close to the western horizon. (Newswire)