A comet that orbits the Sun every 160,000 years will appear in the night sky this week, offering a rare chance
The Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) is expected to be the brightest comet in nearly 20 years, making it as easy to spot as the planet Venus.
Until this week, the comet has only been visible to people in the Southern Hemisphere, however observers north of the equator will be able to view it as it heads back towards the Sun.
Emerging from the Oort Cloud in the solar system, the G3 comet was first discovered on 5 April last year by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS).
Nasa astronaut Dom Pettit captured a picture of Comet C/2024 G3 from the International Space Station (ISS), showing the space rock just above the Earth’s atmosphere.
“It is totally amazing to see a comet from orbit,” he wrote on X. “Atlas C2024-G3 is paying us a visit.”
It is totally amazing to see a comet from orbit. Atlas C2024-G3 is paying us a visit. pic.twitter.com/6Npqa2Wksf
— Don Pettit (@astro_Pettit) January 11, 2025
Other astronomers and space weather forecasters also shared images of the comet, showing that its brightness has increased significantly since the start of the year.
Astronomers have noted that the comet’s increasing brightness could be a sign that it is breaking up, which would mean that this will be the last chance to ever see the G3 Atlas comet.
“The sudden jump in brightness was significant,” Nick James from the British Astronomical Association told Spaceweather.com.
“This could have been an early sign of disintegration, but since then, the comet is still brightening. It looks as if this outburst has not been fatal.”
It is not yet clear how bright the comet will appear in the night sky, with several factors potentially limiting its visibility.
Comet C/2024 G3’s proximity to the Sun could render it invisible to terrestrial viewers, however chances of this are low.
Anyone hoping to see the comet in the US and Europe are advised to look east towards the horizon around half an hour before sunrise between 12-14 January.
The comet should also be visible around half an hour after sunset on 14 January.
