The Jordanian Astronomical Society observes Comet Tsuchenshan-Atlas at a distance of 270 million kilometers

The Jordanian Astronomical Society monitors Comet Tsuchinshan-Atlas, which will decorate the Jordanian sky in mid-October and will be brighter than the stars - Dr. Ammar Al-Sakkji - President of the Jordanian Astronomical Society - During the next few months, Comet Tsuchinshan-Atlas will decorate the sky of Jordan c/2023 A3 , which will be brighter than the stars and may be as bright as the planet Venus. This comet, coming from the Oort Cloud, was discovered in January 2023 by the Mount Barbel Observatory, and was also discovered independently by the Atlas Observatory in South Africa in February 2023.

A few days ago, the Jordanian Astronomical Society monitored and photographed this comet using computer telescopes at a distance of 271 million kilometers from Earth, as it was observed by astronomer Rami Saadeh and astronomer Mazen Bashir. According to an estimate by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the expected magnitude of this comet is 10.88 , and that This number is subject to change over time. For example, on this day, Monday, June 3, the comet will be in Virgo, where the comet can be spotted in the middle of the sky at 19:43 Jordan time, to the northeast, and sets at 1:48 am. Observing the comet these days requires the use of telescopes and binoculars (telescope). And experienced professional observers.

During the months of September and October, the comet will be in the constellation Sextant, in addition to many constellations such as Leo, Virgo, and Ophiuchus. As for the middle of October 2024, it will be in Virgo and can be clearly seen with the naked eye in the skies of Jordan and the Arab region, if astronomical observational standards are available. It is brighter than the stars and may be as bright as the planet Venus. Astronomical calculations indicate that the comet may have a brightness of the second or even first order and may develop a noticeable tail that will be a striking sight when looking at the western evening sky during mid-October 2024., Sky lovers can look at the western horizon and enjoy watching it “with the naked eye” on Sunday, October 13, 2024, from 6:33 pm to 6:53 pm according to Jordanian time. It will be at a distance of 71 million kilometers and it takes about 4 minutes for its light to reach the Earth. It continues to appear for about weeks with varying degrees of clarity.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory has published Kepler's orbital elements for the comet, and the eccentricity of this comet is equal to 0.99979084. This number is close to one, and is important for young researchers who work on calculating orbits, especially applications of numerical analysis and computer simulation systems, as this number is considered suitable material for an experiment. The current accuracy in the solutions of the non-linear Kepler equation used in calculating orbits. This comet takes a periodic time of 80 thousand years to complete one revolution around the sun.