...but the really interesting photo is the second, taken on Friday, 31 October. A strange disturbance can be seen in the comet’s tail! Mike did take a follow-up on 1 November, but the disturbance was already gone. Any thoughts on what happened?

Once you've joined the SJ Astronomy group, the link for the November 15 Starry Nights registration is: www.meetup.com/sj-astronomy...

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As the month progresses, the comet can be observed low on the northern horizon after sunset. As it gets brighter, viewing should be easy through a pair of binoculars.

Here's the link to an article from @earthskyscience.bsky.social with more details and finder charts.

earthsky.org/space/comet-...

Currently, observers have reported the comet's brightness at magnitude 6.5.

At sunset, Comet Lemmon is below the horizon and rises around 1:30 am. Viewing now requires an early wake-up call, but by 5 am, it will be higher in the sky at an elevation of 30°.

Comet Lemmon (C/2025 A6) will potentially be the best comet of the year. Favoring Northern Hemisphere observers, it will pass beneath the Big Dipper in early October, brightening as it heads toward peak visibility around October 31. By that time, it might be visible with the unaided eye!

These transits occur during a six-month window every 15 years, as the Earth passes through the plane of Titan's orbit, which is closely aligned with the plane of Saturn's rings. The first transit of this cycle occurred in April, and the last one was on Sunday, which will not happen again until 2038.

Having an unobstructed view of the eastern horizon will allow for observing the Moon/Pleiades pair sooner, as they are lower in the sky. The bright moonlight will wash out any naked eye view of the Pleiades. But if you have binoculars or a telescope, the view will be more favorable.

- Joe Fragola

Mid-occultation will occur around 9:20 pm with the Moon sitting in the middle of the Pleiades cluster at an elevation of almost 11°. The occultation will end around 11 pm with the Moon and Pleiades at an elevation of 29°.

So, if the skies are clear Thursday night, step outside and take a look.

From San Jose, next week's lunar occultation of the Pleiades begins before 8 pm local time, while the Moon is still below the horizon. At Moonrise (8:12 pm), the occultation will continue, but it will still be a while before the Moon climbs high enough in the sky to get a good view.

Occultations are fairly common and can involve different combinations of objects. Lunar occultations occur when the Moon blocks the view of a planet or background star(s). Stellar occultations also happen when the light of a star is blocked by a planet or asteroid.

Comet 3I/ATLAS is the third known interstellar object, discovered in July, and is on a fast approach toward the Sun. It is currently about magnitude 14.8 and located in the constellation of Libra, between Zubenelgenubi and Zubeneschamali.

Comet 3I/ATLAS is getting lower in the sky but should be capturable with a smart scope and would be a good challenge object for larger telescopes in dark skies this week, leading into the new moon.