Tsuchinshan’s Tail Over the Desert

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) rises like a luminous brushstroke from the October 2024 horizon, its long, pale tail fanning into the quiet sky. Above the low desert hills, the stars stretch into gentle trails, hinting at the long exposure and the slow turning of the Earth. The foreground remains grounded in scrub and distant ridgelines, power poles barely visible against the dusk, while the comet becomes the clear protagonist—a rare celestial visitor briefly sharing the same sky as this familiar landscape. The image holds that sense of awe you feel when something ancient and distant suddenly becomes personal, hanging just above your own backyard.