'Comet of the century' will be visible this weekend. When and where to look for it

A comet that some are calling "the comet of the century" will soon be visible.

Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan–ATLAS is approaching its closest point to the Earth, meaning you'll be able to see something that hasn't been seen by people on on the planet in 80,000 years.

"It would be another 40,000 years after this comet last appeared that Neanderthals went extinct," according to National Geographic , which added it'll be another 80,000 years before this comet is seen again.

While the comet has been visible for most of the month so far, it is reaching a point where visibility will be at its peak in the night sky. NASA says the comet will be the brightest of the year.

"For the past couple of weeks, skywatchers in the Southern Hemisphere and the tropics have been imaging the comet as it climbs out of bright morning twilight," an article states on the Space.com website . "With each passing morning, comet visibility is slowly improving for more northerly locations."

Here's when you can see it.

When will the comet be most visible?

On Saturday, Oct. 12, the comet will come within about 44 million miles of Earth, and that will be the best time to see it. Here's the predicted schedule for the comet, according to Star Walk:

• Oct. 12 : The comet will appear in the evening in the Northern Hemisphere shortly after sunset, very low in the western sky in the constellation of Virgo. Short observation window, but visible with the naked eye. Oct. 12 will be the best time to see the comet.
• Oct. 13-14 : Comet will lose brightness , but will move farther from the sun making it easier to see. It will be visible with the naked eye in the evening about an hour after sunset.
• Oct. 15-19 : (Comet) may produce an anti-tail — a bright streak that appears to be pointing toward the Sun, opposite the other tails.
• Oct. 20-31 : Comet will be visible with binoculars and telescopes.
• November : Visible in the evening. Rises higher in the Northern Hemisphere after sunset.
• December : Gradually moves closer to the sun in our sky, rising lower above the horizon. Not visible from the Southern Hemisphere.

What to know about Comet C/2023 A3

The comet was discovered recently by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS ) who noted it in February 2023. It has been observed a few weeks earlier in January 2023 by the Tsuchinshan Chinese Observatory.

One of the most unique traits of it is it moves opposite to most major solar system objects in the sky.

Sky at Night Magazine added, "Comet A3 will actually look like either a short section of an airplane contrail in the sky, perhaps as long as your index finger, or a little longer, or it will look like a misty shuttlecock, greyish-white in color."

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: 'Comet of the century' will be visible this weekend. When and where to look for it