2025年1月24日
Comet G3 ATLAS: a Tail and a Telescope
Image Credit & Copyright: Yuri Beletsky (Carnegie Las Campanas Observatory, TWAN)
Explanation: Comet C/2024 G3 ATLAS has made a dramatic appearance in planet Earth’s skies. A visitor from the distant Oort Cloud, the comet reached its perihelion on January 13. On January 19, the bright comet was captured here from ESO Paranal Observatory in the Atacama desert in Chile. Sporting spectacular sweeping dust tails, this comet ATLAS is setting in the southern hemisphere twilight and was clearly visible to the unaided eye. In the foreground is the closed shell of one of the observatory’s famous auxiliary telescopes. Still wowing southern hemisphere observers, the comet’s bright coma has become diffuse, its icy nucleus apparently disintegrating following its close approach to the Sun.
Growing Gallery: Comet ATLAS (G3)
Tomorrow’s picture: stardust
阿特拉斯彗星: 彗尾与望远镜圆顶
影像提供与版权: Yuri Beletsky (Carnegie Las Campanas Observatory, TWAN)
说明: 阿特拉斯彗星壮丽的身影悬在地球的夜空中。阿特拉斯彗星（C/2024 G3 ATLAS）这个来自遥远奥尔特云的访客，近日来在地球的天空中大展风华。这颗彗星于1月13日抵达近日点，而在这幅1月19日摄于智利阿塔卡马沙漠欧南天文台（ESO）帕连那天文台的影像里，它的明亮彗尾悬在望远镜的圆顶上方。拍照时，即将西落的阿特拉斯彗星，曳着宽广壮观、肉眼清楚可见的尘尾，沉浸在南半球的暮光中。影像的前景，则为这座天文台著名的辅助望远镜之一的闭合蚌壳式圆顶。虽然这颗彗星目前仍然让南半球的观星者赞叹不已，但它的明亮彗发已变得很弥散，而在此彗星近距离接近太阳后，它的冰冷彗核显然已然崩解。
不断扩大的画廊: 阿特拉斯彗星
明日的图片: stardust
