How To Spot Neowise -- July 15, 2020

Visible:

• particularly in the northern hemisphere
• entire month of July; maybe into August
• comet will be closest to earth on July 23, 2020, and then again, July 23, 9020 (or thereabouts)

Quick, after July 14th, may require binoculars, and may require low-light pollution location:

• take out iPhone
• click on "weather" icon
• note time of sunset
• one hour after sunset walk outside and start looking
• look to the northwest
• take out iPhone again
• click "skyview lite" icon
• locate the Big Dipper
• extend arm not holding the iPhone; make a fist
• "three fists" below the bottom of the Big Dipper
• which is hanging upside down by its handle high above
• and from there, perhaps a little to the right
• that's where comet Neowise is hanging out

July 23rd, closest to earth, but binoculars or telescope will be needed by then;

• locate Big Dipper
• draw an imaginary line through the two stars at the bottom of the Big Dipper's bowl
• follow that imaginary line toward the lower left to a point in the sky a little more than one fist away

Another option:

• YouTube video
• the video lasts 29 minutes; it seems it shouldn't take that long to explain this;
• oh, good, this video takes just 2:11 (two minutes, eleven seconds) to explain this;

If you prefer to read instructions in wordy paragraphs, continue.

From skyandtelescope.org:

To spot Comet NEOWISE, first find a location that has a nice open view very low to the northeast. Then be prepared to be outside and searching no later than 1 hour and 50 minutes before your local sunrise time. The eastern sky will already be starting to show the first signs of the coming dawn.

Venus will be shining low and brilliant off to the right, in the east-northeast. In your northeast direction will be one bright star. That’s Capella, your starting point.

“Look far to Capella’s lower left, by somewhat more that the width of your clenched fist at arm’s length,” suggests Diana Hannikainen (pronounced HUN-ih-KY-nen), Sky & Telescope’s Observing Editor. That’s where Comet NEOWISE will be hanging out. Look for a faint, fuzzy little “star” with a fainter, fuzzier little tail extending upward from it.