Known as Comet A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS), it may be observable from the Northern Hemisphere.

This celestial event, which happens only once every 80 millennia, will be most visible with the help of a DSLR camera, according to NASA astronomer Bill Cooke. However, he noted that good results could still be achieved using a small telescope and a smartphone camera.

For the best view, Cooke recommends finding a dark location right after nightfall and looking southwest. He also mentioned that using a phone camera with a small telescope worked well with previous comets, like NEOWISE, and could prove successful again, depending on the comet’s brightness.

“If it’s bright enough, you might be able to simply rest your phone on a surface and take a picture,” Cooke added.

The comet is expected to be visible between October 12 and 30, having already made an appearance between September 27 and October 2. After this brief window, it will disappear for another 80,000 years.

Discovered in 2023 by Chinese and South African observatories, the comet originates from the Oort cloud, a distant, spherical region of icy bodies surrounding our solar system. While its exact trajectory after passing Earth is uncertain, Cooke suggested it could be slung into deep space, similar to a “stone from a sling.”

Despite the excitement, Cooke cautioned that comets are unpredictable:

“I learned long ago not to bet on them… we’ll just have to wait and see.”