SAEDNEWS: NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day showcases Comet ATLAS in the dawn sky. The image was captured early yesterday morning (January 12) near the town of Trenčín, Slovakia. You can view the photo below.
According to the Science Service of Saed News, NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day features comet ATLAS, which recently approached the Sun. Today, the comet reached its closest distance to the Sun and appeared exceptionally bright. Had comet ATLAS been visible outside the Sun’s glare, it could have been one of the most spectacular comets of recent years.
Known scientifically as C/2024 G3, ATLAS is a non-periodic comet discovered in 2024 through the ATLAS project in Chile. The comet reflects sunlight almost as effectively as the Soochin-Shan-Atlas comet that appeared in October. Currently, it is even brighter in the sky than Venus.
Residents of the Southern Hemisphere can observe the comet with the naked eye. Observers in the Northern Hemisphere are unlikely to see it, as ATLAS is only visible in daylight skies near the Sun’s perihelion in the north.
Predicting the future brightness of comets is always challenging, but astronomers hope ATLAS will survive its close solar encounter and remain visible for several more days.
