Where to see the NEOWISE Comet near Lansing before it disappears

Editor's note: This story has been updated to specify which dates the Fox Park Public Observatory will be open. Its schedule also is available here.

LANSING — Lansing, we have a visitor. And it's out of this world.

The NEOWISE Comet, named for the NASA spacecraft that discovered it March 27, is the the most visible comet since the Hale-Bopp in the mid-1990s.

It will be bright enough to see without binoculars or a telescope in mid-Michigan for the next few days, primarily at dusk and dawn. Once it vanishes, it won't be back around for roughly 7,000 years.

"Bright comets are a little bit unpredictable," Capital Area Astronomy Association President Michael Rogers said. "That's why people are so excited, because it's been a while since we had a comet you could see with your naked eye."

Comets are made of frozen chunks of ice, dust and particles that heat up as they approach the sun, which causes them to give off gas and create a beautiful, glowing tail, said Elias Aydi, a research associate at Michigan State University's astronomy department. 

Aydi and Rogers provided some advice for greater Lansing residents interested in seeing the comet.

How to see the NEOWISE Comet near Lansing

Step one: Get out of the city

Light pollution from streetlights, cars, buildings and factories makes stargazing tough. To get a good view of the NEOWISE Comet, try taking a drive away from the cities of Lansing and East Lansing.

The comet is low on the horizon, so trees and buildings can block it from view. The best places to see it are beaches, lakes, open fields and high elevation points, Aydi said. 

Lansing isn't exactly known for its beaches or elevation, so Rogers suggested driving to agricultural areas like St. Johns to get an unobstructed view.

"If you can, find a safe place where you can pull off the road and look," he said. "Or, if you can, find a friendly rural family who will let you park on their farm field and look out across the sky. That's probably your best prospect because you really have to get away from the city lights."

He suggested trying Sleepy Hollow State Park in Laingsburg and Fox Park Observatory in Potterville.

Fox Park Observatory will be open June 24-25 from sunset to midnight for NEOWISE viewing, lead volunteer Jason Blaschka said.

Recommended donations are $2 per person and $5 per family. The observatory is open air with space for safe social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic. Volunteers will have hand sanitizer and masks available.

Step two: Go at dusk or dawn, and soon

Once you decide where to go, the next question is when.

"The best time to observe the comet is during dusk or dawn," Aydi said. "After the sunset in the evening, if you look northwest you would be able to see the comet. Before sunrise, in the morning, if you look northeast you'd be able to see the comet."

The comet is most visible this weekend and will start to fade Thursday, Aydi said.

NASA scientists expect NEOWISE to be closest to Earth, about 64 million miles away, on July 22.

Step three: Find it with binoculars, the Big Dipper or an app

It's helpful to start with binoculars, Rogers said. NEOWISE is easier to spot with your naked eye once you know where it is.

"I think it's very helpful [to have binoculars] because it is very low on the horizon," Rogers said. "If you extend your arms straight out and clench your fist, it's one or two fist widths above the horizon."

If you don't have binoculars, try looking for the Big Dipper, Aydi said. The comet will be right below it.

And if you can't find the big dipper, try downloading a cell phone app that can help you navigate the night sky.

"You just point your phone toward the sky and on your screen you see which constellations are in the direction you're looking," he said.

Why local astronomers say you should go see NEOWISE

Gazing at the night sky is "transcendent," Rogers said.

"It takes you away from the things that are bothering you on the planet Earth and focuses your attention on how vast the universe is, how extensive and mysterious," he said. "The primary reason to get into [astronomy] is that it takes you away from your everyday cares and worries and makes you focus on the entire universe and the infinity of time and space."

Blaschka, who has taken his family out to see the comet, said it's "awe inspiring."

"Every time someone found it, you could hear a 'wow,'" he said.

Contact Carol Thompson at ckthompson@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @thompsoncarolk.