Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) January 2025

[Pierre_C]

Hi all.

Any thoughts on viewing comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) in January?

I understand perihelion will be around 13 January when it will be 5 degrees from the sun. Apparently, views will be much better from the southern hemisphere.

Interesting articles:
https://starwalk.space/en/news/comet-g3-atlas
https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/comet-atlas-c-2024-g3-kicks-off-the-new-year-what-to-expect/#google_vignette
https://britastro.org/section_news_item/prospects-for-c-2024-g3-atlas

Positional data:
https://theskylive.com/c2024g3-info

[Pierre_C]

I scoped out its position this morning at 5am from Melbourne.

It was supposed to be around 5 degrees above the horizon with a reported magnitude of 5.5, but my SE horizon was not clear enough of trees to see it.

From here, it will sink lower each morning as it gets closer to the rising sun.

From 13 January, it will start its climb into the low western sky. With my tree-lined horizons, I think I will need to wait until 20 January before I have a chance of seeing it.

[Leo.G]

January 13, yeah, a 65th birthday present (oops, sorry, that's 5 years off 60 as I tell everyone, they all assume 55, it's a mere technicality). I have missed all of the past ones, trees or health (or both).
Now i just need my camera back from the repair centre.

Western sky in NSW Pierre?

[Pierre_C]

Happy new year, everyone.

And a happy birthday to Leo for January. Though on Martian time, you will only be 5 years off 30 in November :thumbsup:

I am not familiar with the western sky in NSW, but for visual purposes I would be looking for somewhere with a flat view to the southwest after sunset from around 20 January.

I wonder if astrophotographers might be able to capture it earlier...

[Pierre_C]

Some further interesting articles:


https://www.space.com/the-universe/comets/get-ready-for-the-new-year-comet-what-to-expect-from-comet-atlas-c-2024-g3

https://earthsky.org/tonight/brightest-comet-of-2025-atlas-g3-southern-hemisphere/

[Leo.G]

Thanks Pierre!
We get sunshine every morning and storms every afternoon so the chances of this happening is like every other comet/astro related thing I want to photograph. My camera is still in the repair centre 6 weeks later and have no idea when I'll be getting it returned so I guess it doesn't matter.
I'm missing some beautiful lightning shots at the moment with the light and sound shows before the rain hits.
Oh well.....

[Pierre_C]

Sighted by a person in Victoria yesterday morning, 10 degrees above the rising sun, using binoculars:


https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/comet-atlas-c-2024-g3-catch-it-if-you-can/

[OzEclipse]

I observed and photographed it on Thursday morning.
Time 0534am. Comet. (+3 degrees altitude).
Sunrise 0556. Sun Altitude: (-5 degrees)

Visual 15 x70mm. Easy to see with 10 arc minute tail
Photo: 6 x 1/13s ISO 100 f5

It may not look much but I have darkened a bright sky with shorter exposures low ISO. It is bright. If it survives perihelion it might put on a good show.

Joe

[Leo.G]

Nice shot as usual Joe!

Way too much cloud and rain here.
We just had the biggest electrical storm I've ever seen in the region in 20 years (and have my Nikon back). I was in the process of making a timber fixture to screw onto the toilet window (only window with easterly views) so I could mount a ball head, mount the camera, remove the screen and get some nice lightning shots. The rain changed directions then I misplaced the assembly I was making and can't for the life of me find it......

[Pierre_C]

Well done, Joe!

[Saturnine]

Certainly looking forward to the end of the week when it will become an early evening object, if it hasn't disintegrated in the close approach to Sol in the next few days. Just hope the weather co-operates and so far the forecasts are not good with the persistent coastal cloud and showers. A trip inland may have to be entertained to get away from the clouds.

[Stefan Buda]

Saturday morning around 9:30 I scanned the sky about 10 degrees to the soutwest of the sun with binoculars, while I was very careful about having the roof of the house block out the sun. I did not see the comet but I was surprised to see a procession of satellites following the same path at intervals of less than one minute. Never imagined that it was possible to see sattelites in the daytime.

[Pierre_C]

Here are some rough altitude (elevation) predictions for the comet at sunset (8:42pm) from Melbourne (37 degrees south) from Stellarium:


Wednesday 15 January: 4 degrees
Thursday 16 January: 7 degrees
Friday 17 January: 10 degrees
Saturday 18 January: 12 degrees
Sunday 19 January: 14 degrees

The azimuth (true bearing) is roughly predicted to be 249 degrees (west-southwest), to the right of the setting sun.

[Saturnine]

Going by the latest SOHO LASCO C3 images, it seems that the comet may survive its perihelion passage around Sol and become a bright evening comet later this week and next. Pray for clear skies for some of that time.

https://soho.nascom.nasa.gov/data/realtime/c3/512/

[Pierre_C]

I have been getting some interesting photos throughout the day today with a number of bright objects appearing close to the sun. They are visible only after reprocessing the photos. I am still working out how to interpret them (e.g. comet, satellites, artifacts, imagination etc...).

This afternoon, it is around 5 degrees to the right of the sun in the southern hemisphere and I think may be visible through clever photography and image processing.

From today's experience, I think it is still too close to the sun to be seen with the unaided eye from the southern hemisphere.

(Routine warning - do not look directly at the sun as it can damage the eyes. Do not look at the sun using binoculars or a telescope unless you have special solar viewing equipment and know what you are doing).

[OzEclipse]

Hi Pierre,
I observed similar with 10x42 ED binoculars near Young lunchtime today. No comet but I saw them too. I got a very clear if brief view. Had to be careful not to track them into the sun.

Pretty sure they were weather balloons caught in a jet stream.

Joe

[Pierre_C]

Well, after getting very excited about seeing and photographing many bright dots close to the sun today, I have discarded a surprisingly large number of photos with the dots in the wrong places. There is so much human stuff up there!

Here are the remaining three re-processed photos which seem to correspond roughly to the comet's position at different times of the day. The bright dots are in the bottom right third of the photos:


12:17pm with the sun in the northeast,
12:52pm with the sun in the north-northeast,
4:25pm with the sun in the west, looking west.

What bothers me is that the promising bright dots were not consistently reproducible across all of my photos, suggesting that while they may have been roughly in the right position at the time the photos were taken, they may have been just passing through the field.

I would be interested in people's thoughts as to whether these were the comet or something else.

I took these photos using an iPhone and used different parts of my house to block out the sun at different angles through the day. The photos have been rotated and stretched, and so do not form a linear series.

Thanks.

[Leo.G]

This is a serious question currently in my region, what's the "sun"?
Constant cloud, drizzle and rain locally, I'll get it next time around.....




Is that 160,000 years or 600,000 years?
I guess if finances improve I'll have a better camera by then.

[Pierre_C]

Well, due to clouds, trees, houses and family emergencies I am not going to claim to have seen this one apart from the beautiful photos from Joe and others across the forum - thanks for sharing them!

[Rob_K]

With the Moon moving back, C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) is getting easier to photograph again. This was taken last night, 16 Feb, 10:30 UT (9:30pm local) from Bright in Victoria. Sky was still a little light with the last bit of twilight and a faint flush of moonlight coming in, but much better than previous evenings. Should be in dark sky tonight, finally. I took this with a Canon 800D & 200mm lens mounted on a Vixen Polarie star tracker, 21 x 10 sec, ISO 12800, F/3.5, image uncropped. One or two satellite trails in there!


Cheers -

[erick]

Well captured Rob :thumbsup: Nothing but tail now?

(unfortunately, someone scratched your negative :lol:)

[Rob_K]

Thanks Erick! Yep, all tail now but still hanging in there. I've attached a shot from 31 Jan, badly scratched neg! ;) Hope everyone's enjoying their fast internet... :rolleyes::lol::lol:

Cheers -

[Rob_K]

Tail was still going strong the night before last, 20 Feb 2025. Well, maybe not that strong as it's been over a month since the comet disintegrated! ;) :lol: Canon 800D, 200mm lens, 7 x 15 sec, ISO 12800, F/3.5, uncropped. 10:51 UT.

Cheers -

[Pierre_C]

Nice photos and persistence, Rob.
Thanks for sharing :thumbsup:

[Rob_K]

The tails of C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) live on - last night's shot (28 Feb 2025) is attached. I took longer subs and so attempted some deeper processing, pretty damned crude as usual! :lol: Both tails appear to extend beyond the frame. Details on image.

Cheers -