In the photo from the space station, the comet is captured just above Earth’s horizon, which is illuminated by a bright light — also known as airglow — that occurs in the planet’s upper atmosphere when atoms and molecules emit light after being excited by sunlight.

Perfect weather has opened up Adelaide’s skies for an event of a lifetime that won’t happen again for about 160,000 years. The G3 Atlas comet is currently visible in the Southern Hemisphere as it passes overhead.

In a race against time, clouds and the setting sun, photographer Josh Dury captured this dramatic photograph of Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) at dusk on Jan. 15.

Astronaut Don Pettit took this stunning photo of a nearby comet from the International Space Station