C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS)

The Forerunner of C/2024 G3? - updated 2024-12-07

The discovery of this Oort cloud comet on Jan. 9, 2023, was by the D29-Purple Mountain, XuYi Station in China and independently by M22-ATLAS a few weeks later.  The first image was taken 2023-01-09.897119 or 21:31:51.082 UT, as seen here, positioned at 18° Sco 19'46.74". Its perihelion at 0.3914189 au (or, 58,555,440.95 km) was on 2024-09-27, 17:54:49.306 UT (15° Vir 50'50.22"), its perigee is 2024-10-12, 15:14:16.563 UT (0° Sco 20'06.24"), and its natural/apparent North Node is 2024-10-08, 5:02:00.9 UT (9° Lib 25'29.20") in the constellation Virgo, according to the epoch solution for Dec. 3 here.

Credit: Jan Curtis on October 19, 2024 @ Cheyenne, WY

As stated here, the comet is “a celestial visitor that promises to be a highlight of the year. As it journeys through our solar system, its brightness and visibility could offer a stunning display for stargazers worldwide.”

Since it’s from the Oort cloud (astronomers are convinced, anyway), it’s probably a first visit to our Solar System, traveling in our direction for tens of thousands of years. For most of us adults, it is natally in the same position between 27°-25° Scorpio, 99.4 au from us in 1950 and 47.4 au in 2000, advancing only a couple degrees. On Dec. 16, 2010, the harbinger came within Pluto’s orbit at 31.947 au. On Sep. 5, 2024, it was retrograde conjunct the Sun in 13° Vir, then stationary direct (SD) on Sep. 17, 19:24 UT (12° Vir 55'38"), and on Oct. 9, 23:26:21 UT (17° Lib 09'30"), it will conjunct the Sun again for the last time ever! Here’s a cool simulation of this (Credit: Nicolas Lefaudeux).

What I find interesting among other things is C/2023 A3’s Meridian 1st House cusp (9° Cap 43'44") exactly conjunct Chiron’s Moon (9° Cap 44'58"), with Chiron exactly conjunct C/2023 A3’s 4th House cusp. That’s, of course, if we use the proper discovery date/time for Chiron. The interlacing Yod Patterns, especially the one with the apex Moon in the 8th ruling the 7th, are inauspicious! Remember the Great Comet of 1997, C/1995 O3 (Hale-Bopp)? Hale-Bopp is now in 9° Cap, conjunct Chiron’s Moon (left limb) on Nov. 7 and C/2023 A3’s 1st House cusp on Nov. 16, 2024!

The objects in the sidebar are in this order (karmic asteroids in black with C/2023 A3 in red): 

2010EN65, Chariklo, Nemesis, Asmodeus, Taguacipa, Selene, C/2013 C2 (Tenagra), Karma, Izhdubar, Isis, Atropos, Werdandi, Lachesis, Klotho, Lucifer, Typhon, C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS), Osiris, 238P/Read, Orius, Aruna, Skuld, Urda, LILITH, Okyrhoe, Apollo, Pandora, Mithra, Magdalena, Athene, APOPHIS, Sedna, Ahau, Psyche, 2002XW93, Tukmit, Horus, Zeus, Hera, HERACLES, Hebe and Tomaiyowit.
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