A newly discovered comet visiting from the most distant parts of our solar system will be visible in the evening skies for the next week or so.
Named NEOWISE, the comet made its once-in-a-lifetime close approach to the Sun in early July — and has been visible just before dawn since. It is now working its way outside Earth’s orbit on its way back to the outer parts of the solar system by mid-August, according to NASA.
“Observers all over the world are racing to see the natural fireworks display before the comet speeds away into the depths of space. Even the astronauts aboard the International Space Station spotted it from their vantage point high above Earth’s atmosphere,” NASA reports.
Now that NEOWISE is speeding away from the sun, the comet should be making an appearance in the evening sky, shortly after sunset through about midnight, low on the horizon to the north/northwest.
You may need binoculars at first to find it, but it can be seen with the naked eye once located. NEOWISE may also be more visible later in the week, EarthSky.org reports.
