MSGID: 1:153/757.0 d0b36060   
   TZUTC: -0700   
   CHRS: LATIN-1 2   
                           Astronomy Picture of the Day   
      
       Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our   
         fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation   
                       written by a professional astronomer.   
      
                                  2024 October 19   
      
                         Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS Flys Away   
                      Image Credit & Copyright: Xingyang Cai   
      
      Explanation: These six panels follow daily apparitions of comet C/2023   
      A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS as it moved away from our fair planet during the   
      past week. The images were taken with the same camera and lens at the   
      indicated dates and locations from California, planet Earth. At far   
      right on October 12 the visitor from the distant Oort cloud was near   
      its closest approach, some 70 million kilometers (about 4   
      light-minutes) away. Its bright coma and long dust tail were close on   
      the sky to the setting Sun but still easy to spot against a bright   
      western horizon. Over the following days, the outbound comet steadily   
      climbs above the ecliptic and north into the darker western evening   
      sky, but begins to fade from view. Crossing the Earth's orbital plane   
      around October 14, Tsuchinshan-ATLAS exhibits a noticeable antitail   
      extended toward the western horizon. Higher in the evening sky at   
      sunset by October 17 (far left) the comet has faded and reached a   
      distance of around 77 million kilometers from planet Earth. Hopefully   
      you enjoyed some of Tsuchinshan-ATLAS's bid to become the best comet of   
      2024. This comet's initial orbital period estimates were a mere 80,000   
      years, but in fact it may never return to the inner Solar System.   
      
                 Growing Gallery: Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS in 2024   
                     Tomorrow's picture: a simulated universe   
        __________________________________________________________________   
      
          Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)   
               NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.   
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                         A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,   
                              NASA Science Activation   
                                & Michigan Tech. U.   
      
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