Have you met comet C/2023 A3 yet?

Last night, I drove out to the dyke near Emden with my camera and that quiet kind of anticipation only a clear evening sky can bring. Across the Dollart, Delfzijl lit up the horizon with a thick haze of light pollution. And yet, there it was: C/2023 A3, the long-awaited visitor from the outer edges of our Solar System. And yes, it was worth the way.

At first it was hard to spot against the glaring light dome. But as darkness settled in and my eyes adjusted, it unfolded its true shape. A delicate tail stretching outward and I was amazed by its sheer scale. I had never seen a comet before so it was a first for me to see something so ancient. It had a quiet majesty to it that made me awestruck.

I brought my telescope along, and when a few curious evening walkers passed by, I offered them a glimpse too. It felt good to share the moment—seeing their faces light up as they found it in the eyepiece, that same breathless “wow” I had just felt myself.

Discovered in early 2023 by both the Tsuchinshan Observatory in China and the ATLAS survey in South Africa, this comet made its closest approach to the Sun in late September 2024. Around October  9–11, forward‑scattering effects made it glow brilliantly. It reached up to magnitude -4.9 becoming one of the brightest comets in decades. Now it’s heading away from the Sun, which means it rises higher in our evening sky each day – but also fades a little more.

The best time to catch it? Right now, just after sunset. Find a dark spot with a clear western view, bring binoculars or a telescope if you have them, and give your eyes a moment to adjust. It won’t blaze across the sky, but if you’re patient, it reveals itself. Quiet, distant, and full of stories older than memory.

Of course, I tried to capture it on camera too. But I’m still a bit inexperienced with stacking—and depending on the method, either the stars or the comet end up trailing. So post-processing turned out to be trickier than expected.

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