Maui photo enthusiasts capture images of Comet Tsuchinshan-Atlas

Maui photo enthusiasts captured images of Comet Tsuchinshan-Atlas as it passed over Maui skies on Sunday night.

Scientific American reports the celestial object was discovered by astronomers in January 2023 through images taken at the Purple Mountain Observatory in China. The next month, astronomers spotted the object again using the NASA-funded Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System (ATLAS), and confirmed it was a comet as opposed to an asteroid.

NASA reports the new comet has passed its closest to the Sun and is now moving closer to the Earth. “C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) is currently moving out from inside the orbit of Venus and on track to pass its nearest to the Earth in about two weeks,” according to a Sept. 30 update from NASA.

The California Institute of Technology’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory estimates that the comet’s closest approach to Earth will be on Oct. 12, 2024.

According to NASA, Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS is near naked-eye visibility and easily picked up by long-exposure cameras.

Viewing tips and brightness estimations are posted online at EarthSky.