Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle
Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle Sky Charts and Coordinates
This is a simplified sky chart, showing where Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle is now with respect to the brightest stars and constellations.
More advanced sky charts are available on TheSkyLive for this object: 1) the Online Planetarium which is interactive and allows to select dates and additional objects to visualize; and 2) the Live Position and Data Tracker which provides the highest precision position data and features deep sky imagery from the Digitized Sky Survey.
High Precision Live Sky Chart
The Observed Magnitude and Coma Diameter values are derived from the Comet Observers Database by averaging the values reported in recent observations (more recent than 4 days), when available. The Estimated Magnitude comes from the JPL Horizons ephemerides service and might be inaccurate given the highly dynamic and unpredictable behvior of comets. When available please refer to the Observed Magnitude value and consider the Estimated Magnitude as a directional indication. We acknowledge with thanks the comet observations from the COBS Comet Observation Database contributed by observers worldwide and used in this table to report recent comet observations.
Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle Rise and Set Times
Today's Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]. All times are relative to the Europe/London timezone.
Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle Orbit Diagram
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle and the planets along their orbits in this diagram accurately represents the current configuration of the objects in the Solar System. This is an experimental feature and it requires a WebGL enabled browser. Please provide us feedback!
View Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Dec 04 | 09h 46m 27s | -21° 46’ 41” | 36.13 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 05 | 09h 46m 26s | -21° 47’ 21” | 36.13 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 06 | 09h 46m 23s | -21° 48’ 02” | 36.13 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 07 | 09h 46m 21s | -21° 48’ 41” | 36.13 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 08 | 09h 46m 18s | -21° 49’ 18” | 36.13 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 09 | 09h 46m 17s | -21° 49’ 55” | 36.13 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 10 | 09h 46m 14s | -21° 50’ 33” | 36.13 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 11 | 09h 46m 10s | -21° 51’ 08” | 36.13 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 12 | 09h 46m 09s | -21° 51’ 43” | 36.12 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 13 | 09h 46m 05s | -21° 52’ 18” | 36.12 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 14 | 09h 46m 03s | -21° 52’ 51” | 36.12 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 15 | 09h 46m 00s | -21° 53’ 25” | 36.12 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 16 | 09h 45m 56s | -21° 53’ 56” | 36.12 | Hydra |
| 2018 Dec 17 | 09h 45m 52s | -21° 54’ 26” | 36.12 | Hydra |
Distance of Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle from Earth
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle from Earth as a function of time. Distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with a 2 days interval.
The reported distances might be inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of 109P/Swift-Tuttle is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Light Curve of Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle, according to the most recent ephemerides data. Magnitude data is sampled with a 2 days interval and there might be inaccuracies for objects changing brightness very rapidly during the course of a few days. For comets there could be large discrepancies between the observed and predicted brightness because of their highly dynamic behaviour.
Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle at epoch 09 October 1995 00:00 UTC (JD: 2450000.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.96322576 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 113.45381700° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 0.95951616 AU 143,541,574 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
51.22462284 AU 7,663,094,520 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
26.09206950 AU 3,903,318,047 km |
| Orbital period | period |
133.2800 years 48,681.1935 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 1992-Dec-11 23:59:41 2,448,968.4998 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2126-Mar-26 04:38 2,497,649.6932 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 152.98216763059° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 139.38119208159° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 7.6316961671242° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.00739505°/day |
| Closest approach to Earth* | 2013-Feb-17 | |
| Distance of closest approach* | 32.76524309 AU 4,901,610,610 km |
|
* NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed for the time interval between 2013-Jan-01 and 2075-Dec-31, with a sampling interval of 1 day.