Photographing Comet Tsuchinshan–ATLAS from Uncanoonuc Mountain in New Hampshire

I heard that comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) was going to be visible and I thought It would be fun to try and photograph it. The last comet I was able to capture was Comet Neowise.

The comet is supposed to be visible for about a week or two under ideal conditions. The tricky part is that the comet is close to the sun making it harder to see and is only visible just after sunset and just before sunrise.

It took me three evenings to get these shots.  The first night I tried, there was a thick layer of clouds along the horizon. The second night there was a thin layer of clouds.

The third night looked to be clear skies, so I crossed my fingers and headed back up Uncanoonuc. This time I got there after sunset and decided to stay the full hour and a half before the comet disappeared behind the horizon.

When I arrived, there were quite a few people there. Some with cameras and some with telescopes. It was breezy and chilly. After sunset everyone started leaving. It was chilly and the sky was still to bright to see the comet.

After a while I was the only one left on the mountain. I took a test shot and noticed the comet in the photo. I zoomed in and took another to be sure. Yup it was a comet.

From here I was able to track and photograph it for about a half hour. Very fun. These are the photos I got. Some are a little blurry due to the winds and longer exposure attempts. I’m Pretty happy with them.

It pays to be patient and persistent.