How to See a Comet That Won’t Be Visible for Another 6,000 Years
Due to COVID-19, you may not be able to take your kids to the planetarium anytime soon. But if they are into astronomy, you’re in luck, because we can see the comet that started tonight. Scientifically known as Comet C / 2020 F3 (NEOWISE), it has been seen several times at dawn this month, but will go into dusk this week. Here’s how to see it.
How to see comet NEOWISE
According to Earth Sky , from about July 12-15 (so today) the comet will become visible at dusk (just after sunset). It will be low on the northwest horizon. If the comet remains a little bright, we may be able to see it towards the end of the month in the evening twilight, and it will appear slightly higher in the sky.
Use binoculars to get a better look – although some people report that once you spot a comet with binoculars, you can see it without them if you know where to look. But if you want to see a comet’s split tail, binoculars are best.
So how big is this comet? “By its infrared signature, we can tell (its core) is about 5 km [3 miles] across … and is covered in sooty dark particles left over from its formation around the origin of our solar system 4.6 billion years ago.” – Joseph Masiero . Deputy Principal Investigator for NEOWISE at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Earth Sky told Earth Sky .
But that’s not it! The comet closest to Earth will be July 22-23. Here’s what Earth Sky has to say about it :
It will pass approximately 64 million miles (103 million km) from our planet. The good news is – if the comet still looks great – the closest view at night should be good. Although a sky visitor may require binoculars, they will be visible at the same time we see a beautiful crescent moon (not too bright).
If you are interested in viewing NEOWISE, this month is your best chance: next time this comet could become visible from Earth again in about 8 786.