Comet seen once every 80,000 years to appear across northern Illinois skies

Days after the northern lights were visible across Stateline skies, another rare astronomical event is underway. 

Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, also known as C/2023 A3, is expected to be visible to the naked eye across the Northern Hemisphere into the end of October according to NASA. 

This is a once in a lifetime event considering the comet’s orbit around the sun is once every 80,000 years. To find comet C/2023 A3, look west about 45 minutes after sunset. This comet is expected to get higher in the sky and dimmer with each passing evening. 

Having a pair of bincolars or a DSLR camera with a zoom-in lens will further make things easier to view the comet. Unlike the last few days, today and the days that follow feature better viewing conditions as cloud cover won't be as expansive.