Albertans are capturing newly discovered comet on camera

Glowing brightly in the sky bynight, and followed by a trail of what looks like white light, a comet visible to the naked eye is currently moving past Earth anddazzlingAlbertans.

Comet NEOWISE C/2020 F3 was discovered on March 27, andnamed after the the NASAspace telescopeused to discovered it.

And although itcomes from outer space,CBCCalgary's astronomy watcher DonHladiuktold theCalgary Eyeopener on Thursday that a comet isn't that different from a dirty snowball.

"If you were to pick up a handful of snow alongthe road,it would be a mixture of ice, and dust, and rock and that's exactly what this comet is,"Hladiuksaid.

Comet made brighter by proximity to sun

At first, NEOWISE was visible only through powerful telescopes.But as it passed the sun, it had anoutburst of activitythat caused it to become much brighter in July and some Albertans wereable to capture it with just their camera phones.

"As [the comet]approaches the sun it changes phase from a solid to a gasby missing that intermediate liquid stage, because it's in the vacuum of space there's no real water on a comet,"saidHladiuk.

"And that's what produces this beautiful, long tail that we're seeing."

According to NASA, that tail which is comprised of ion and dust is expelled from the comet's nucleus, which isfive kilometres in diameter.

How to spot NEOWISE

NEOWISE will be closest to Earth, and at its brightest, on July 22. After its current visit, the comet likely won't be seen again for 6,800 years.

Hladiuksaid Albertans hoping to catch a once-in-a-lifetime glimpse of this meteor willwant to look to the northern horizon and find the Big Dipper. Below the handle of the constellation is where the comet is positioned in the sky.

It will be more easily spotted when the twilight glow has disappeared, and getting out of the city to hunt the comet is even more effective, so that our eyes can adapt to the dark.

Comet-hunters hoping to catch more detailmay want to bring binoculars, which can let in more light.

With files from the Calgary Eyeopener and CBC British Columbia.