Comet follows northern lights sightings in area

Posted 10/15/24

Local photographer Greg Wise, ever observant of the night sky, has been burning the midnight oil the last few weeks.

He has been out for multiple viewings of the northern lights and, Sunday …

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Comet follows northern lights sightings in area

Posted

Local photographer Greg Wise, ever observant of the night sky, has been burning the midnight oil the last few weeks.

He has been out for multiple viewings of the northern lights and, Sunday night, went to a spot near the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center for a shot of a comet burning in the sky above Heart Mountain.

The C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS comet, discovered in 2023, only comes to our part of the galaxy once every 80,000 years. According to Space.com, the coma (comet head) currently measures about 130,000 miles (209,000 kilometers) in diameter, accompanied by a tail stretching out for some 18 million miles (29 million km).

It can be viewed for the next 10 days in the early evening. Watch for where the sun sets and then look up about 15 degrees from the horizon about 45 minutes after the sun dips below the horizon.

— By Zac Taylor

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