
Comet streaking past Earth, providing spectacular show - dnetesn
https://phys.org/news/2020-07-comet-streaking-earth-spectacular.html
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EamonnMR
This article has instructions for observing it:
[https://skyandtelescope.org/press-releases/new-bright-
visito...](https://skyandtelescope.org/press-releases/new-bright-visitor-
comet-neowise/)

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nabilhat
NEOWISE has been lining up with outbreaks of noctilucent clouds [0] as well
for fortunate observers! With its position moving to be visible in the evening
rather than before the crack of dawn it'll be a lot easier to look for soon
for most of us. Seeing Hale-Bopp is one of the two most memorable astronomical
phenomenon I've witnessed - It's on par with randomly seeing an exploding
fireball while taking out the trash. This one's no Hale-Bopp but I would argue
any naked eye comet is stunning and memorable. Don't pass this one up if you
can help it.

[0]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noctilucent_cloud](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noctilucent_cloud)

Also, tons of photos:

[https://spaceweathergallery.com/index.php?title=neowise](https://spaceweathergallery.com/index.php?title=neowise)

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js2
Here’s a really nice picture of Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) from the RDU airport
parking deck.

[https://imgur.com/njJvFwc](https://imgur.com/njJvFwc)

Taken at 4:50 am on July 10th by reddit user enlightened_prince (not me).

6 second exposure using a 100mm lens. Not sure of the camera.

[https://old.reddit.com/r/raleigh/comments/hon6ee/comet_neowi...](https://old.reddit.com/r/raleigh/comments/hon6ee/comet_neowise_from_rdu/)

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fnord77
> The year after the Great Comet of 1618, for example, Gotthard Arthusius
> published a pamphlet stating that it was a sign that the Day of Judgment was
> near.[136] He listed ten pages of comet-related disasters, including
> "earthquakes, floods, changes in river courses, hail storms, hot and dry
> weather, poor harvests, epidemics, war and treason and high prices". ...
> Spectroscopic analysis in 1910 found the toxic gas cyanogen in the tail of
> Halley's Comet,[137] causing panicked buying of gas masks and quack "anti-
> comet pills" and "anti-comet umbrellas" by the public.[138]

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sxp
This online skychart has useful info on when & where to look:
[https://theskylive.com/planetarium?objects=c2020f3](https://theskylive.com/planetarium?objects=c2020f3)

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chewzerita
I know this is completely off topic, but seeing these pictures reminds me of
one of my favorite movies Your Name (2016). If anyone has a spare 107 minutes
in quarantine, I would highly recommend watching it, or at least adding it to
your "queue."

[https://myanimelist.net/anime/32281/Kimi_no_Na_wa](https://myanimelist.net/anime/32281/Kimi_no_Na_wa)

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jessriedel
No equipment or knowledge is necessary to see this; it's very obvious in the
pre-dawn sky and took me about 5 seconds to spot. However, the tail is not
that bright, so if you want to see detail then binoculars are recommended.

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mark_l_watson
I live in the mountains of Central Arizona. I was able to see the comet a
little while ago. It was pure luck: I went out front and with the setting sun
the light was just right to see a tiny white point with a tiny line coming out
of it. I ran inside and grabbed the good binoculars my son in law gave me for
Christmas, and for just about 1 minute it was beautifully visible/good detail
with the binoculars. Then the light changed and it was gone from view.

I think I missed seeing the last comet.

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kwoff
"Astronomy Picture of the Day" has a picture from the ISS:
[https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200710.html](https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200710.html)

(There's a beautiful 10-minute video from the ISS apparently based on time-
lapse photos from eol.jsc.nasa.gov on July 5th, but I don't want to link it
directly.)

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jelliclesfarm
Woke up early to see if I can spot the comet..but couldn’t. I was able to see
Venus and Mars tho’ ..and our Moon. Earlier last week ..at night, I saw Saturn
and Jupiter and three moons.

It’s very thrilling! Hope to catch the comet and maybe get some photos. This
can be viewed with the naked eye..so fingers crossed for the timing.

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HenryKissinger
Sometimes I wish I didn't live in the middle of a large city. Light pollution
blocks most celestial objects.

~~~
tgb
I thought so too until a friend showed me his small telescope on his apartment
building right downtown. And we could see Saturn's rings clearly! I would
never have guessed it could be done in the middle of a major city.

~~~
jelliclesfarm
It is always a delight to see Saturn with the rings..every single time, it
makes me gasp!

A small spotting scope is sufficient to catch saturn and even Jupiter..Altho
you can’t really see the bands on Jupiter.

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iJohnDoe
Anyone else concerned that a comet this big and this close to earth was only
discovered on March 27?

IMO, I think this is evidence we’ll most likely never have more than a few
months notice of something hurtling towards us regardless even if its going to
destroy life on earth.

A few months isn’t much time.

~~~
projektfu
Close? As in 0.69AU, more than half the distance to the Sun?

However, it's true that these objects that spend most of their long orbits
outside of Neptune's orbit are going to be hard to detect until they enter the
near solar system.

Luckily, most of these objects are also inclined well away from the ecliptic,
and so their probability of an interaction is low. The closest this object
could ever get to Earth on its orbit is 0.36AU.

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leejoramo
Wow. I hadn’t even heard of this comet and I go to the linked story the photo
is from the town I live in.

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somewhereoutth
Day of the Triffids?

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onetimemanytime
>> _It will be about 7,000 years before the comet returns, "so I wouldn't
suggest waiting for the next pass," said the telescope's deputy principal
investigator Joe Masiero of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena,
California._

Couldn't make it past this pessimistic comment ;)

