Comet Neowise puts on a spectacular show
- by Carmen Reese
- in Science
- — Jan 31, 2021
Neowise comes from the most distant reaches of our solar system and had a close-call with the sun on July 3 - 16 million kilometers (10 million miles) closer than Mercury's orbit. "In comparison, the sodium tail is narrower, longer and points directly away from the sun", Boston University research scientist Carl Schmidt added. And yet the comet has managed to survive this intense roasting-this is what excites the skywatchers. There are likely billions of comets orbiting our Sun in the Kuiper Belt and even more distant Oort Cloud.
A comet is approaching close to Earth, and sadly it won't be hitting us, ending this miserable year, but it's in the United States and giving us one of the best skyshows in recent memory! The comet expands to form a "glowing head that can be larger than a planet", says the US space agency NASA.
In a subsequent tweet, the space organisation also shared a better quality image of the same.
NASA experts will discuss and answer public questions about Comet C/2020 F3 NEOWISE during a broadcast of NASA Science Live and follow up media teleconference on Wednesday, July 15.
- Emily Kramer, co-investigator on the Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (NEOWISE) science team, NASA JPL.
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station have already caught a glimpse. For those watching from India, look at northwestern sky-20 degrees from the horizon, after sunset.
NEOWISE has been visible to the naked eye, NASA said on its website.
Fortunately for those who are not early risers, NEOWISE has now shifted to evening mode where it can be seen rising higher in the night sky as it heads toward the "bowl" of the Big Dipper. "A pair of binoculars or a small telescope will enhance its visibility", he added.
Viewers in the northern hemisphere have been advised to look out for Neowise an hour before sunrise.
Images of comet NEOWISE recorded by the Planetary Science Institute's Input/Output facility (false color presentation). From now until July 23 the comet will get dimmer, and you'll need to look for it with binoculars or a telescope, preferably in a place without much light pollution. Although the darker the sky, the better your viewing experience, so the mountains or the desert aren't a bad idea.
The upper tail segment of the tail is the ion tail.
NEOWISE is visible only to observers in the Northern Hemisphere and should remain bright enough to spot into mid-August.
Barbour offers, "We can see Neowise from our deck in Columbia, looking northwest toward Angels Camp".
After this date, the comet will start to move away and will not to return for another 6800 years as it continues on its journey through the Solar System.
