Comet and Lightning Beyond Bighorn Mountains

Explanation: Normally, Steamboat Point looks cool -- but not this cool. Every day, the iconic peak of the Bighorn Mountains is an interesting sight, in particular from US Highway 14 in Wyoming . On some rare days, the rocky vertical ridges look even more incredible when seen in front of a distant lightning storm . Earlier this month, though, something even more unusual happened -- the naked-eye Comet NEOWISE rose above it in the middle of the night. Just as a distant lightning storm was occurring in the background. Recognizing a rare opportunity , a determined astrophotographer spent a sleepless night capturing over 1400 images of this unusual triple conjunction . The featured image is among the best of them, with the foreground lit by the Moon off to the right. Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) is now headed back to the outer Solar System , destined to return only in about 6700 years .

Comet NEOWISE Images: July 26 || 25 || 24 || 23 || 22 || 21 || 20 || 19 || 18 || 17 || 16 || 15 || 14 || 13 || 12 || 11 || 10 & earlier ||