Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS is one of the biggest astronomical talking points of 2024 so far, and comet-chasers and photographers alike have been waiting patiently all year to see what autumn will bring.
The comet is due to be at its best around 12 October 2024, but astro imagers are already out in force, capturing images of A3.
We've received so many images of Comet C/2023 A3 over the past few weeks, all of them spectacular in their own right.
We've even seen images of Comet A3 captured from the International Space Station.
Wael Omar is an astrophotographer based in Egypt, who managed to capture a beautiful view of Comet A3 and a thin crescent Moon over the famous Giza Pyramids.
Find out more about how to photograph Comet A3, our beginner's guide to Comet A3 and observing Comet A3 in October.
The three elements of this composite image were all captured on the same night, and show Comet C/2023 A3's tail and the beautiful crescent Moon over the pyramids.
The images were captured 1 October 2024 between 05:40 – 06:01.
"I'd been planning to capture these images for about 10 days, and there were a few problems I needed to overcome to make it happen," says Omar.
"I was searching for a high place to have a clear view of the three Egyptian pyramids, and to include the rise of the crescent Moon and Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS in the same view.
"Finding such a place in a very crowded area like Giza is difficult, as there will always be a residential building blocking the view.
"I continued my search and finally found a place high enough, about 2.7 km west of the pyramids.
"I used the PhotoPills app to confirm I would have both the comet and the Moon in frame from that location.
"This was a Bortle 9 sky, and even after capturing the image, the stacking apps failed to make the comet appear.
"I had to manually stack around 25 subs for each layer, to reveal the details of the comet. This was a bit of a pain, taking me over 9 hours to complete the stacking.
"But it paid off, and I was able to get Comet A3 to come into view."
See more of Omar's photography via his Instagram profile @waelomar_astrophotography.
Have you captured an image of Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS? Send us your images – we'd love to see them.
