The first couple of weeks of December were visible to the naked eye as a target for observers with telescopes and binoculars.
The viewing venue has changed and the new comet is visible in the evening sky after sunset. You can use the sky's bright beacon to locate Venus tonight.
Leonard's brightness was hovering around magnitude +6.3 when December began. The value is based on an average of dozens of reports posted on the comet observation database. A magnitude of +6.3 would make comet Leonard appear to be just bright enough to be seen by the untrained eye, but those with less-than- perfect viewing conditions could easily see the comet with the aid of binoculars and a knowledge of where precisely to look.
We recommend telescopes and binoculars to see comet Leonard. If you want to get the best deals on telescopes and binoculars, check out our guide. Our guides for the best cameras for astronomy can help make sure you're ready to take a picture of the night sky.
Want to see a comet? Here are telescope and binoculars suggestions.
The sun and Earth have seen a bright light over the past couple of weeks as comet Leonard approaches. The comet passed closest to Earth on Monday at a distance of 21.7 million miles and now shines at magnitude +3.9, putting it within range of naked-eye viewers.
The comet may be difficult to identify. Its current location in the sky puts it against a dark background, which is illuminated by evening twilight. There is a bright nearly full moon rising in the east that adds its own glow to the sky.
Venus is a benchmark for making a sight.
A diagram shows the positions of Venus and Leonard in the sky. The image is from Starry Night.
The comet will have an ally in helping you see it, in the form of Venus.
The "evening star" can be seen in the southwest sky shortly after sunset. On Friday evening, it will be the comet Leonard.
The comet will be positioned below Venus if you hold your fist at arm's length.
Binoculars will help.
You should wait until at least an hour after sunset to look for a comet. If you can see the comet below Venus, you can spy it. You will be looking for a fuzzy patch of light that appears to be in the direction of Venus.
If you can't see the comet with your eyes, look below Venus with binoculars. A small telescope will show the coma and tail of the comet. You can use Venus to find the comet if the weather is cloudy on Friday, but it will no longer be below Venus but below the sun on Saturday.
The comet will reach its closest point to the sun on January 3 at a distance of 57.2 million miles and will be thrown out of the solar system.
Brighter than most.
The spectacle that came about from the evolution of the comet NEOWISE was far different than what we see today.
Leonard's tail structure is far inferior to that of NEOWISE. Leonard can still be considered bright, even though most of the comets that pass through the inner solar system are not visible to the naked eye. A comet like Leonard, that becomes bright enough to be seen with the naked eye, are less frequent.
If you take a picture of a comet or night sky, send it to spacephotos@space.com with your name and location in the subject line.
Joe is an instructor and lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy in publications. Follow us on social media.
