In the photo from the space station, the comet is captured just above Earth’s horizon, which is illuminated by a bright light — also known as airglow — that occurs in the planet’s upper atmosphere when atoms and molecules emit light after being excited by sunlight.

Perfect weather has opened up Adelaide’s skies for an event of a lifetime that won’t happen again for about 160,000 years. The G3 Atlas comet is currently visible in the Southern Hemisphere as it passes overhead.

NASA astronaut Don Pettit has snapped a striking shot of the super-bright comet racing past our planet for the first time in 160,000 years, as it lit up the night skies across the globe.

One of the brightest comets in 20 years, Comet 2024 G3 (ATLAS) returns for a close encounter with the sun — but will we be able to see it?