Stunning twilight photo captures comet bidding farewell to Earth for 80,000 years

a streak of white light hangs in a starry night sky above the silhouette of a tree

(Image credit: Miguel Claro)

Miguel Claro is a professional photographer, author and science communicator based in Lisbon, Portugal, who creates spectacular images of the night sky. As a European Southern Observatory Photo Ambassador and member of The World At Night and the official astrophotographer of the Dark Sky Alqueva Reserve, he specializes in astronomical "Skyscapes" that connect both Earth and the night sky.

Last year, at the end of summer, we had a vibrant comet visiting the northern skies, so I took this opportunity to capture a few images over the course of several nights.

On the final night, I caught the comet in a time lapse showing C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-Atlas flying across the background starry skies of Dark Sky Alqueva territory in Portugal.

It was visible during a moonless winter night, which revealed both the Milky Way and the comet as it bid farewell to Earth for the next 80,000 years.

Fine art prints

three colorful images of the sun, a wispy cloud of gas in space, and a meteor shower, all in picture frames

(Image credit: Miguel Claro)

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do, and if you want to support my work as an independent artist, you can buy one of my images as a print and a piece of art or a wall decor for your sweet home! Explore the size options and different types available on my Print gallery. Meanwhile, you can sign-up my newsletter to get early access of future releases.

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Miguel Claro is a professional photographer, author and science communicator based in Lisbon, Portugal, who creates spectacular images of the night sky. As a European Southern Observatory photo ambassador, a member of The World At Night and the official astrophotographer of the Dark Sky Alqueva Reserve, he specializes in astronomical skyscapes that connect Earth and the night sky.

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