WORDEN – Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS has been visible to the naked eye across the US since the weekend. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Montanans like Worden resident Jennifer Bagley, who was able to capture photos of the comet in her backyard.
As A Professional photographerBagley wasn’t going to miss his shot as the Comet went up.
“It comes every 80,000 years, so you can see it all at once,” Bagley said Monday at his home in Worden. “I looked at my husband and said, ‘Oh, the comet is out.’ I must go and see.”
Despite being 44 million miles away, Bagley was able to take a photo of this comet.
Jennifer Bagley
“I was really excited to see it… a lot of people didn’t even know it was happening, so most people were like, “Oh, how did you catch it?” I was like, “Well, it’s there.” You have to go out and look at the sky,” Bagley said. said. “You’re in awe.”
She wasn’t the only one at Worden with a bright idea.
“I looked for maybe, I don’t know, 20, 30 minutes and didn’t see anything. Finally, it got dark enough that I started to see it a little bit. I waited a long time and then it finally showed up,” said Huntley project science teacher Rick Dees.
Dees took photos of the comet near Roundup on Sunday night.
“I’ve only seen three of these things. So it’s not every day you see one of these,” Dees said. “It’s really exciting stuff, so it’s a good time to be a science teacher.
Rick Dees
“It came from the Oort cloud, which is what we call a long-period comet. Those things are not like Halley’s Comet, which we’re going to see again in a human lifetime,” said MSU Billings senior lecturer Steven Wiles.
Wiles said the Neanderthals were the last people to see the comet.
“You know, if I lived a thousand years ago or ten thousand years ago, I’d see it. I’d be horrified. But today I know what it is,” Wiles joked.
Matthew Dominique
It’s a rare sight but one to watch all week.
“If you want to see the comet’s head, even a pair of binoculars is going to give you a beautiful view. And you’ll want to look west. Like this Saturday. Hold your hand two fists above where the sun sets,” Wiles said.
“If you’ve got five seconds, five minutes or whatever, do it. Get a picture. Take a picture,” Bagley said.
