The October night sky features a newly discovered comet, a meteor shower and 4 planets

A newly discovered comet is heading toward Earth, and should be visible from New York City.

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tuchinshan-ATLAS) will make its closest approach to Earth — just 44 million miles away — on October 12. If it does not separate, it will be easy to see from the five administrative regions.

“Comets are unusual, fascinating, and beautiful objects to look at,” said Jackie Faherty, an astrophysicist at the American Museum of Natural History. “I ask people to pay attention and not get everyone’s hopes up too high, because comets can fade away because when they get close to the sun, they can disintegrate.”

Comet Zouchenshan was first spotted in China in January 2023, and appears to have two tails: one white and the other blue. The best time to view it is just after sunset. The comet appears to be located in the region of the constellation Ophiuchus, which resembles a man carrying a snake.

“The comet is getting closer and closer,” Faherty said. “Now, people are watching this nonstop.”

The comet caps off a very active month for astronomy buffs, marked by meteor showers, four planets and the autumnal rising of the constellations.

Just before the comet reaches Earth, the Draconid meteor shower will begin on October 6, and will peak the following night at about 10 meteors per hour. Cosmic lights, which are best viewed in the early evening. It will appear to radiate from the constellation Draco and will only last for five days. The meteors will travel at a leisurely — for meteors — 12.5 miles per second.

Meanwhile, the Orionids meteor shower will peak on October 21, with twice as many meteors traveling at 41 miles per second. The fireballs are the remnants of Halley’s Comet. Meteorites began appearing at the end of last September, and will continue until November 22.

Faherty recommends stargazing from an elevated deck or along the Hudson or East River — where there are few obstructions — to get the best views of shooting stars.

“The higher you go, the greater your chance of seeing more of the sky,” Faherty said. “You need to be able to see a large portion of the sky so you don’t miss the bright sky.”

Venus is the brightest object in the night sky after the moon, and is best seen just after sunset. On October 5, Venus will appear as a very bright dot next to the waxing crescent moon.

Jupiter, the third brightest celestial object, becomes visible around 9:30 p.m. Saturn can also be seen with the naked eye. Mars is more difficult to spot because it appears later in the evening, just before midnight. By the end of the month, the red planet will rise early, before 11 p.m

“October is a good month to observe the planet,” Faherty said.

Autumnal constellations will also light up the night sky this month. One of the most notable of these beings is the hunter Orion, whose left foot houses one of the 10 brightest stars in the sky: Rigel, the blue-white giant.

The Pegasus constellation is one of the largest, and has four bright stars forming the square of its body – Merkab, Chet, Algenib, and Alferatz. Its brightest star, Enev, is located on the nose of Pegasus.

“The rise of Pegasus in the eastern sky is actually a signal that autumn has arrived,” Faherty said.