Comet NEOWISE
Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) over Lac des Vaux in Verbier 20th July 2020
What an amazing experience! Watching Comet C/2020 F3, otherwise known as NEOWISE (Near-Earth Object Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer’ space telescope), over Lac des Vaux in Verbier on 19th July. Comets, or ‘dirty snowballs’ are apparently made of dust, rocks and ice left over from when the solar system was formed over 4.6 billion years ago. NEOWISE won’t grace our skies for another 6800 years, so it’s worth staying up to experience!
Many people have been telling me that they missed Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) but you haven’t! It is still visible although it is starting to dim as it’s heading to the outer solar system now. So by the end of this month it will be difficult to see but don’t give up yet! Look for the Big Dipper then scan below it and you will hopefully find it, especially if you have binoculars as it’s not fast moving to the naked eye. Look carefully as it might look like a thin faded cloud to start with, and you might overlook it. Here it is above the ‘La Chaux Express’ chair lift in Verbier on the 20th July, still very visible in the sky.
The comet was only discovered on 27th March this year. The same time I had Covid19, so not a time I will forget! I’ve been finding nice facts such as it has two tails. One is made of electrically neutral material such as water ice and dust particles forming the distinct white fuzzy shape around the comet and its tail. The second tail is made from a plasma – an electrically charged cloud of gas. Colours can be green or blue depending on the kind of charged gas escaping from the comet. As the plasma flows away from the comet it is guided by the Sun’s magnetic field and the solar wind. This causes separation between the two tails – one being driven by the comet’s direction, and the other by the Sun’s magnetic field.
NEOWISE is moving at 150,000 miles per hour. But despite that, I’m amazed that it looks like it’s almost stationary when looking up at it, which makes it easy to watch. This is 2 separate 1hr time lapses, so you can see how long it is visible in the sky.
Friends keep looking at me weirdly when I try and describe how to look for the comet. I’ve been saying ‘don’t look straight at it but look at it out of the corner of your eye like you are trying not to see it...dart your eyes around side to side and you’ll catch it’…Hmmm, more technically what I’m trying to say is that the human eye’s peripheral vision is the most sensitive to brightness, whereas the centre of the eye is more sensitive to colour. So it’s easier to find it using your peripheral vision. I always say the same when looking directly at stars. Look slightly to the left or right and your peripheral vision will catch the comet. Also you have to adapt your eyes to the dark. For about 20 mins stand in the dark and your pupils will dilate. And don’t look at your phone. The white light will kill your night vision. Good luck!
The night sky blows my mind. Nowhere I would rather have been but up the mountain by the lake in the middle of the night with my camera. Food for the soul.