Watch comet Neowise in Northern hemisphere

Comet Neowise is visible in the sky, in the Northern hemisphere this month. The celestial object, perceptible in the night or morning sky, is a bliss to watch, said S A Mohan Krishna, amateur astronomer.

Comets mostly remain in deep-frozen ‘sleep’ in the outer space, but sporadically they are dislodged from their orbits and fall forward the inner solar system. Comets are at their brightest, when they are close to the Sun. It is best to search for them after sunset. Comet Neowise is visible throughout July and the first week of August, he said.

Mohan Krishna said, “The behaviour of comets is unpredictable. Large comets have thick, insulating crusts, while smaller comets may be like snowballs and melt away as they come closer to Sun. One can expect a ghostly greenish-orange splotch to grow brighter in the sky near ‘Auriga’ as comet C/2020 F3 Neowise will make its closest approach to Earth.”

“Comet Neowise was discovered on March 27, by Near Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (NEOWISE), a space telescope launched by NASA in 2009. Comet Neowise was closest to the Sun or reached perihelion on July 3, passing at 43 million km from Sun, or a bit closer than the average distance from the sun to Mercury,” he added.

As Neowise is one of the few naked-eye comets of this century, it has already been photographed behind many famous sites and cities, just before sunrise. The brightness of Neowise, in coming days, remains ambiguous, but it will continue to be detectable in the early morning sky. It can be located near planet Venus, in the morning sky. After July 15, it will be detectable in the early evening sky. Professional observatories rarely have time to scan the skies in search of new celestial objects, so amateur astronomers, using simple equipment often discover comets, he pointed out.

On June 7, the comet was on the far side of Sun, 117 million km from the star and 236 million km from Earth. From June 22 through June 27, it was within the range of the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). SOHO is an accommodating mission between the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA. Currently, Neowise is up at dawn. It will be in the dawn sky around July 11. By mid July, the comet will become evident at dusk (just after sunset), low in the northwest horizon, Mohan Krishna said.

Neowise will be closest to Earth on July 22-23, at some 103 million km. Although binoculars might be required for a celestial visitor, one can see a beautiful crescent (not too bright) moon also. Comet Neowise might be visible again, from Earth in year 8786 AD, he said.