                        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 September 25
   A sunrise sky is shown over water and trees. The horizon is orange and
   the top of the image is deep blue. On the far right vertical bands are
   shown becoming progressively darker. In each band a comet appears, with
    the comet appearing increasingly near the top of the image on lighter
    bands. The main part of the image on the left is the lightest. Please
             see the explanation for more detailed information.

                   Comet A3 Through an Australian Sunrise
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Lucy Yunxi Hu

   Explanation: Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS is now visible in the early
   morning sky. Diving into the inner Solar System at an odd angle, this
   large dirty iceberg will pass its closest to the Sun -- between the
   orbits of Mercury and Venus -- in just two days. Long camera exposures
   are now capturing C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS), sometimes abbreviated
   as just A3, and its dust tail before and during sunrise. The featured
   image composite was taken four days ago and captured the comet as it
   rose above Lake George, NSW, Australia. Vertical bands further left are
   images of the comet as the rising Sun made the predawn sky increasingly
   bright and colorful. Just how bright the comet will become over the
   next month is currently unknown as it involves how much gas and dust
   the comet's nucleus will expel. Optimistic skywatchers are hoping for a
   great show where Tsuchinshan–ATLAS creates dust and ion tails visible
   across Earth's sky and becomes known as the Great Comet of 2024.

               Survey: Color Blindness and Astronomical Images
               Growing Gallery: Comet Tsuchinsan-ATLAS in 2024
                       Tomorrow's picture: open space
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

