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Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News
Paul Huttner

Once in a lifetime comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS visible this week

Look low in the western sky after sunset. The comet won't return for 80,000 years.

A comet streaks across a dark blue night sky
Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS is seen over Lake of the Isles in Minneapolis on Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024.
Ali Lozoff | MPR

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Get out there, Minnesota.

This could be the best week to see the rare comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS. The comet made its closest Earth approach last weekend. And it will rise slightly higher in the western sky each evening through October.

You should be able to see the comet with the naked eye. But a pair of decent binoculars will provide even better viewing.

The comet was discovered by two separate observatories. Here’s more detail from the Washington Post.

Comet Tsuchinshan–ATLAS was identified in 2023 by two observatories, which are also its namesake. China’s Tsuchinshan (or “Purple Mountain”) Observatory and an ATLAS (Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System) telescope in South Africa documented it for the first time in history as it approached the inner solar system.

The comet's dense core is about a mile across. But the comet’s tail is 18 million miles long!

MPR News editor Andrew Krueger took these photos a few days ago (click on the second image to see the comet high above the Schmidt brewery sign):

Clear skies

Overall, skies look mostly clear above Minnesota just after sunset Tuesday.

NOAA GFS model
Global Forecast System model cloud cover forecast at 7 p.m. Tuesday
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, via Tropical Tidbits

Thursday night also looks mostly clear.

Good luck and happy comet-watching!