British Columbians are sharing more images of a recently discovered comet that will be only visible over B.C. for the next couple of weeks, before disappearing again for thousands of years.
The Neowise comet, discovered in March by NASA’s Neowise infrared space telescope, reached its closest point to the sun on July 3, which caused the “frozen ice ball” to heat up and burn gas and dust off its surface.
NASA explains that, "This very close passage by the Sun is cooking the comet's outermost layers, causing gas and dust to erupt off the icy surface and creating a large tail of debris. And yet the comet has managed to survive this intense roasting."
Yesterday, Vancouverite Tim Travis tweeted that he saw his first comet first comet ever on Sunday night. He adds that, "If you're looking for #CometNEOWISE in Vancouver, turns out the best place is readily accessible: the beaches at Locarno, Jericho, or Spanish Banks. After 10:30 pm, North sky over Cypress, a bit below the Big Dipper. Use binocs or a telescope."
Have a look at some of the best photos from the Lower Mainland over the past few days.
Couple of photos from last night at Garry Point Park. Not the best lighting (there were lights), terrible gear, but #cometNEOWISE pic.twitter.com/cevHGJ39kS
— Julie Holden (@jholden23) July 20, 2020
#cometNEOWISE shot from Spanish Banks in #Vancouver BC. Picture taken Just after 11 pm on July 18, 2020. Beautiful conditions to observe it. #BCWX #NEOWISE pic.twitter.com/TOf8nAZJyp
— Michel Gélinas (@GarconGlacon) July 19, 2020
Stepwise - every few minutes - #cometNEOWISE superimposed resulting in a #Fractal night sky at Harrison Lake BC. @ProfBrianCox #NEOWISE #Astrophotography pic.twitter.com/dpLYSqbftW
— Dr. Christian Sasse (@Sassephoto) July 20, 2020
#cometNEOWISE from the Richmond dike at around 11:25 pm July 19 2020.
— Michel Gélinas (@GarconGlacon) July 20, 2020
The #comet was faintly visible to the unaided eye towards the northwest, below the Big Dipper. #BCWX #BCstorm #NEOWISE pic.twitter.com/iER75vIysm
#NEOWISE Vancouver, Stanley Park, 11:30pm, July 18th #cometNEOWISE @DailyHiveVan #NeowiseComet #vancouver #StanleyPark #canada pic.twitter.com/urfHRoPP6Y
— This is Flo (@flovancity) July 19, 2020
Skies cleared and although I'm unaccustomed to taking photos of the night sky I went out and got some of #cometNEOWISE. pic.twitter.com/xjM3P0X74j
— Alphonse Williams (@Augustlands) July 19, 2020
Went comet gazing last night and I wasn’t disappointed! #shotoniphone #cometNEOWISE #vancouverbc #Canada pic.twitter.com/ix5MKIOApH
— Taruna Goel (@write2tg) July 18, 2020
Great to catch neowise and a meteor at the same time, i wonder is it fragments of the comet itself ..hhmmm #neowisec2020F3 #NEOWISE #NEOWISE彗星 #cometNEOWISE #cometc2020f3 #canonphotography #vancouver #space #longexposure #Canada #PhotoOfTheDay pic.twitter.com/qwnWVzdjYK
— Rory Coomey (@RoryCoomeyPhoto) July 17, 2020
Got out the telephoto, the wide-angle, and the panoramas... :)
— Tyler Black, MD (@tylerblack32) July 16, 2020
#NEOWISE #comet #cometNEOWISE #vancity #Nikon pic.twitter.com/9ZrKmmRhRv
Sit back and take a bit of time to enjoy space in all its glory, or just watch a burning comet hurtling through space. #cometNEOWISE #comet #NeowiseComet #landscape #vancouver #Canada #longexposure #space #adventure #exploreBC pic.twitter.com/tC2eCKEJ4x
— Rory Coomey (@RoryCoomeyPhoto) July 20, 2020
Comet Neowise can be seen just after sunset on a clear night by looking below the Big Dipper in the northwest sky. Use binoculars or a telescope for a clear view of the tail. Comet Neowise won't be back for 6800 years...#CometNeowise #Comet pic.twitter.com/lUiD5rbc9P
— Capt. Wayne Luke (@WayneLuke) July 16, 2020
Well that’s cool. #northvan #cometNEOWISE pic.twitter.com/UqoCSdbzhl
— Mathew Bond (@mrmathewbond) July 16, 2020
#CometNeowise as seen over #Vancouver from Spanish Banks last night at about 2:30AM! pic.twitter.com/Hi5Yq5JzvJ
— Rory Court (@rorycourt) July 15, 2020
Comet #NEOWISE last night 19 July Harrison Lake BC #timelapse #cometNEOWISE #cometc2020f3 @beyond90seconds @B_Ubiquitous @DavidBflower @HalSherman @AstronomyFans @CTVVancouver @myersm705 #Astrophotography @weathernetwork pic.twitter.com/Db62VacpVv
— Dr. Christian Sasse (@Sassephoto) July 20, 2020
Last week, a local astrophotographer shared a remarkable image of a rare comet and Aurora Borealis at Harrison Lake.
Liron Gertsman, a 19-year-old astrophotographer and astronomy enthusiast, tells Vancouver Is Awesome in an email that he's never had the opportunity to shoot a comet before. The last comet visible from the northern hemisphere that was comparable to Neowise was Comet Hale–Bopp in 1997, which was before he was born.
The previous night, Gerstman also photographed the comet from over English Bay, resulting in a very "Vancouver" landscape image featuring the comet. Read more and see the photos HERE.