Talk:Comet NEOWISE

kheider notes

Qiсһеng Ζһаng: brightening at n~8 since entering C3, which is far above what's typical of a stable comet. -- Kheider (talk) 20:19, 25 June 2020 (UTC)

Trajectory section

This is actually as it is seen from Earth, right? Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 20:33, 11 July 2020 (UTC)

Yes, the retrograde loops are parallax from earth's annual motion around the sun. Tom Ruen (talk) 20:45, 11 July 2020 (UTC)

That is what I thought - could be confusing to someone seeing it. The new caption works. Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 03:58, 12 July 2020 (UTC)

What is the continuous yellow arc in Comet_2020_F3-skyview.png ("Comet position in the sky.")? BMJ-pdx (talk) 12:32, 14 July 2020 (UTC)

This is the ecliptic or the apparent annual path of the Sun. AstroLynx (talk) 14:00, 14 July 2020 (UTC)

Gallery section

I don't think the gallery section should have been removed, for the same reason as why we maintain galleries for eclipses/etc. The section provided a good insight on how it is/was visible. I'd suggest leaving at least the best dozen (one per country). Cheers, Rehman 12:13, 12 July 2020 (UTC)

Of course the page should have a gallery section. Maybe one problem was the duplication of too many similar images, and the gallery should show the progression of comet views. Randy Kryn (talk) 12:27, 12 July 2020 (UTC)

There were 12 wide angle photos that all basically showed the same thing. It was overkill. Four photos could have done the same thing, but then editors will probably fight over which four backgrounds they like. -- Kheider (talk) 12:49, 12 July 2020 (UTC)

Maybe leave two or three for now, and then pagewatchers can choose from additions as the comet is seen and photographed more. A gallery in some form is almost essential for a popularly promoted comet such as Neowise. Maybe a hidden note to ask editors not to duplicate already familiar and included images would hold down the parade of photos. Randy Kryn (talk) 13:00, 12 July 2020 (UTC)

Agree with Randy. Alternatively, maybe we could simple leave it open (as is the case with most other articles such as eclipses), and remove those that are of bad quality or seemingly duplicates of better images. Having the section (even with a couple of duplicates slipping through) certainly does more good than bad. Rehman 13:50, 12 July 2020 (UTC)

The page is up to 42,000 daily views now, so should probably put back a limited gallery to show readers what it might look like from an on-the-ground perspective. Randy Kryn (talk) 20:24, 12 July 2020 (UTC)

I went ahead and restored the gallery that was initially there. The selection may need to be updated, as there now seems to be some new good ones on Commons. Cheers, Rehman 05:14, 13 July 2020 (UTC)

Thanks. Did some trimming of the images, should get some good ones daily so determination of what to keep should be maintained so the gallery doesn't get too large, but 12 to 18 images could be shown without losing interest. Up to 48,000 daily views, so presenting an educational encyclopedic page while not going overboard on images, but still having a nice selection, will give those seeking information a nice overview. Randy Kryn (talk) 13:03, 13 July 2020 (UTC)

Here's a rather nice shot of the comet over Stonehenge for consideration. Don't know what the copyright status is, though. And I'd really like to see the shot from Parker Solar Probe included. Surely that beats any Earthbound viewpoint, no matter how picturesque? 88.145.188.153 (talk) 22:51, 13 July 2020 (UTC)

Sodium

Single-purpose account Galaxactic seems to be promoting himself with twitter. -- Kheider (talk) 07:57, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

The issue seems to be the discovery of sodium in the comet. People were tweeting about this on the 12th but Chris Schur had found sodium in the spectrum on July 11. I'd have thought that spectroscopic analysis would have been done weeks ago but my quick browse only finds recent stuff like this. Andrew🐉(talk) 10:56, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

Hi there! I'm Galaxactic. There seems to be a lot of confusion so I thought I'd make it more clear. I am not the one who wrote the paragraph about the twitter users, as you can see it was by an anonymous user with a specific IP Adress. I am not associated with anyone that was mentionned in the paragraph at all, you might have thought I was "GalacticMilk" but it's a pure coincidence that our names are similar, I'm new on Wikipedia. I am also aware that I did a mistake by not searching for a better source earlier but I was asleep. Here is a scientific paper published this morning by the person who actually discovered the sodium tail. So yes, it's the twitter guy who discovered first the sodium tail. Best Regards, Galaxactic(talk) —Preceding undated comment added 11:54, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

Space.com also has an article "Comet NEOWISE has a sodium tail. Here's what it looks like." -- Kheider (talk) 18:36, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

Apparent magnitude

I saw it listed on here that NEOWISE's apparent magnitude was +2.9. This is based off a single data point by Carl Hergenrother. Let's avoid using a single observation by one individual. COBS lists the comet at +2.0. astro.vanbuitenen.nl lists it at 1.6. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Kdenny994 (talk • contribs) 19:18, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

As of July 15, COBS is using data from July 15 and lists 1.4–2.9 while http://astro.vanbuitenen.nl/cometobs seems to be a single observer from July 11. Four days can be a long time if a comet is fading. -- Kheider (talk) 23:37, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

The excessive "naked eye" language on the page should be toned down and made clear that this comet is not easily seen by the naked eye in urban areas. This is not a spectacular comet and needs binoculars to view, which should be made clear (wording to that effect was deleted a day or so ago). Randy Kryn (talk) 14:33, 19 July 2020 (UTC)

The current language of the lead seems fine:

By July 2020, it was bright enough to be visible to the naked eye. It is one of the brightest comets in the northern hemisphere since Comet Hale–Bopp in 1997 and was widely observed as being clearly visible with the naked eye. It has been considered by Seiichi Yoshida and Farmer's Almanac as a possible Great comet, and NASA noted that it could become known as a great comet. However, this distinction is usually reserved for comets that are easily observable with the naked eye, even with low to moderate light pollution. Under dark skies, it can be clearly seen with the naked eye and might remain visible to the naked eye throughout most of July 2020, at least until July 23, the point of the comet's closest approach to Earth. Prior to that date, the comet will be getting closer to Earth as it moves farther away from the Sun. As of July 18, the comet is about magnitude 3. Near urban areas binoculars are required to locate the comet.

Andrew🐉(talk) 20:44, 19 July 2020 (UTC)

"Visible to naked eye" ?

I think a caveat needs to accompany any mention of the comet being visible to the naked eye.

Here in Phoenix, AZ, the comet is only visible if you have binoculars &/or a telescope. It is not visible to the naked eye.

To see the comet like all the photos show and w/o binocs/'scope, you have to be away from the glow of city lights.

Thoughts/comments ? 2600:8800:784:8F00:C23F:D5FF:FEC4:D51D (talk) 13:37, 20 July 2020 (UTC)