Tuesday’s Comet Tracker: Where And When To See Comet A3 And The Moon

What time will comet A3 be visible tomorrow? Comet A3, also known as Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS (C/2023 A3), is currently in a dalliance with a waning crescent moon that’s becoming slimmer and more delicate each night.

The comet is also gradually sinking towards the eastern horizon before sunrise, and becoming harder to see. So you do need to be up very early and get a clear view of the eastern horizon.

Comet A3 is set to be visible for the rest of this week before disappearing into the sun’s glare for a short period. It will re-emerge in twilight around Oct. 12 for those in the Northern Hemisphere. In the evenings after Oct. 12 (when it will get closest to Earth at about 44 million miles (71 million km) or so), it will rise higher into the sky and, hopefully, brighten a lot. Either way, it should be visible in the west immediately after sunset.

Here’s how to see it tomorrow — and how to go stargazing as you find it:

Where To See Comet A3: Tuesday, Oct. 1

Position: east-southeast, 21 degrees from the sun in Leo

Time: an hour before sunrise where you are (around 07:00 in the U.S.)

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Expected magnitude: +4.5

Comet's distance from the sun: 60.5 million km

Comet's distance from Earth: 112.3 million km

Today see’s comet A3 alongside a delicate crescent moon — a very rare sight!

Look due east an hour before sunrise to see the comet on the right and a 1.5%-lit crescent moon on the left. Start searching about about 75 minutes before sunrise, when the two will be seen in astronomical darkness, which will last until about 60 minutes before sunrise. It’s a short window.

Stargazing With Comet A3

If you have made the effort to get up an hour or more before sunrise just to see the comet with your naked eyes, it’s also worth looking around the pre-dawn night sky for some bright objects visible today.

If you look directly above the comet and the crescent moon you will see Mars, currently waxing towards its opposition in 2025. It’s close to the two stars of Gemini, Castor and Pollux.

In the northeastern sky you will see the Big Dipper, while in the southeastern sky you will see bright star Sirius and, above it, the constellation Orion, most recognisable for its three bright belt stars — Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka.

Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.