Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR
Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR is a periodic comet that takes 5.47 years to complete one orbit around the Sun. It was first discovered on November 27, 1869, by Ernst Wilhelm Leberecht Tempel and later independently by Lewis Swift on October 11, 1880. After 1908, the comet was considered lost due to unsuccessful attempts to observe it during successive perihelion passages. However, on December 7, 2001, the Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) program discovered a new object, which was later confirmed to be the same comet. With a perihelion distance of 1.6 astronomical units and an aphelion distance of 5.3 astronomical units, the comet's orbit takes it from beyond Jupiter's orbit to just inside Earth's orbit.
Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR is in the constellation of
Ophiuchus,
at a distance of
Finder Charts
View interactive star map
High precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Celestial Coordinates
Apparent
J2000
Additional Information
The observed values of Magnitude, Coma Diameter and Tail Length are derived from the most recent observation recorded at the Comet Observers Database. The value of Predicted Magnitude comes from the JPL Horizons ephemerides service and, in the case of comets, might be inaccurate given the highly dynamic and unpredictable behavior of these objects. When available, please refer to the Observed Magnitude value and consider the Predicted 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.
Rise and Set Times
Today's rise, transit and set times of Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR from Greenwich, UK (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR is below the horizon from Greenwich, UK.
- Given its current magnitude, 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR is visible only through long exposure photography.
- Go to interactive sky chart
If you need to access this information frequently for your observations, you can create a simple customized Quick Access page, so that you can easily bookmark it in your browser favorites or add a shortcut to your mobile phones' home screen.
Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR from Earth is currently
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR from Earth as a function of time. In the chart the distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with an interval of 1 day.
The value of the reported distance might be somewhat inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach
Between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2099, the closest approach of Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR to Earth happens on Thu Nov 12 2026 at a distance of 0.401211 Astronomical Units, or 60,020,365 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Light Curve
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR, 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.
Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR at epoch 01 November 2019 00:00 UTC (JD: 2458789.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.57742214 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 14.43558223° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.38970845 AU 207,897,426 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
5.18758094 AU 776,051,064 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
3.28864470 AU 491,974,245 km |
| Orbital period | period |
5.9639 years 2,178.3309 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2020-Nov-26 00:20:20 2,459,179.5141 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2026-Nov-13 08:16 2,461,357.8451 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 167.76737396335° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 238.98702367228° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 295.54464870958° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.16526415°/day |
Orbit Visualization
View Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR in the 3D Solar System Simulator
15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Apparent celestial coordinates are provided.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Feb 09 | 17h 34m 14s | -20° 01’ 27” | 31.80 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 10 | 17h 35m 00s | -20° 00’ 28” | 31.79 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 11 | 17h 35m 46s | -19° 59’ 26” | 31.78 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 12 | 17h 36m 31s | -19° 58’ 24” | 31.76 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 13 | 17h 37m 16s | -19° 57’ 19” | 31.75 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 14 | 17h 38m 00s | -19° 56’ 12” | 31.74 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 15 | 17h 38m 44s | -19° 55’ 03” | 31.72 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 16 | 17h 39m 27s | -19° 53’ 52” | 31.71 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 17 | 17h 40m 09s | -19° 52’ 40” | 31.70 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 18 | 17h 40m 52s | -19° 51’ 25” | 31.68 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 19 | 17h 41m 33s | -19° 50’ 09” | 31.67 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 20 | 17h 42m 14s | -19° 48’ 51” | 31.65 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 21 | 17h 42m 55s | -19° 47’ 31” | 31.64 | Ophiuchus |
| 2025 Feb 22 | 17h 43m 35s | -19° 46’ 09” | 31.63 | Ophiuchus |
Additional Resources
- Position and finder charts (see also Where is Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR?)
- Distance from Earth (see also How far is Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR from Earth?)
- When does Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR rise and set?
- Brightness (see also How bright is Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR?)
- Orbital elements. Detailed information about Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR orbital parameters.
- Interactive orbit visualization. 3d visualization showing the orbit of Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR with respect to the major Solar System objects.
- 15 days ephemerides. Table showing celestial coordinates and magnitude of Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR for the past and next 7 days.
- Interactive sky chart. An online planetarium application that shows where to locate Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR in the sky from your location.
- Live position tracker. A high precision sky chart that uses real deep sky imagery to help locate Comet 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR with your telescope or on your astrophotographies.