OCTOBER SKY WATCH
Full Moon Tonight Oct. 17, 2024
The big picture: The comet, known as C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, is expected to be closest to Earth on Oct. 12, when it's 44 million miles away.
If you can't spot it Saturday night, don't fret: NASA says it will be visible nightly through the end of October.
How to see a once-in-a-lifetime comet Saturday and beyond:
Look to the night sky on Saturday for the best chance to see a comet that won't be back for another 80,000 years, according to NASA.
When and where to see Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS
Zoom in: Bill Cooke, lead of NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office, told NPR the comet will appear low on the western horizon about 45 minutes after sunset each day starting Saturday, Oct. 12, through the end of the month.
The comet is expected to fade the week before Halloween or around Halloween, Cooke said, noting it depends on how bright it is.
The intrigue: The comet was first discovered in 2023 by observers at the Purple Mountain Observatory in China and an Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System(ATLAS) telescope in South Africa, NASA said.How to see the rare comet.
What we're watching: The comet should be bright enough to see with the naked eye, though binoculars and telescopes should give a better view.
October full moon
The full Moon on Thursday, October 17, 2024, is known by its nickname, the Hunter’s Moon—it appears low and large on the horizon, so wait until sunset to watch it rise and take its place in the sky.
This year, it’s also the biggest and brightest Supermoon—
so that should be quite a sight!
The Moon will appear nearly full Oct. 13-14 but it will officially be full on Oct. 17 at 7:26am EDT, per Space.com.
Supermoon refers to a full or a new moon rising near or while the moon reaches perigee, its closest distance to Earth in its orbit around the planet, according to NASA.
Orionid meteor shower
The Orionid meteor shower is expected to peak around Oct. 20-21 and most visible between midnight through before dawn, according to EarthSky.org.
This meteor shower is an annual event at the end of October when the Earth passes through meteoroids left behind by Halley's Comet.
The American Meteor Society says the meteor shower will be active until Nov. 22.
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