Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy
Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy is currently in the constellation of Aquarius.
The current Right Ascension of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy is 22h 22m 11s and the Declination is -05° 41’ 38” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom ). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy is 20.11 (JPL).
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.
Today's rise, transit and set times of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy from Greenwich, United Kingdom (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- 135P/Shoemaker-Levy is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom .
- Given its current magnitude, 135P/Shoemaker-Levy 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.
Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy Position and Finder Charts
Below we provide Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy finder charts showing where the object is right now in the sky with respect to the brightest stars. The first finder chart has a field of view of 50 degrees, while the second one has a field of view of 10 degrees. Click on each finder chart to access a full screen interactive Online Planetarium.
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen
Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy from Earth is currently 589,795,955 kilometers, equivalent to 3.942542 Astronomical Units. Light takes 32 minutes and 47.3475 seconds to travel from Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy 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 135P/Shoemaker-Levy from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy to Earth
Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy to Earth happens on Sat May 28 2022 at a distance of 1.686005 Astronomical Units, or 252,222,725 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy Brightness and Light Curve
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy, 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 135P/Shoemaker-Levy Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy at epoch 20 February 1997 00:00 UTC (JD: 2450500.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
Element | Symbol | Value |
---|---|---|
Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.29022851 |
Orbit inclination | i | 6.05058089° |
Perihelion distance | q | 2.71688981 AU 406,440,931 km |
Aphelion distance | Q |
4.93878488 AU 738,831,704 km |
Semi-major axis | a |
3.82783735 AU 572,636,317 km |
Orbital period | period |
7.4893 years 2,735.4491 days |
Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 1999-Dec-10 12:02:32 2,451,523.0018 JD |
Next perihelion transit | 2007-Jun-06 22:49 2,454,258.4509 JD |
|
Argument of perihelion | peri | 22.698033610268° |
Longitude of the ascending node | node | 213.36198304826° |
Mean anomaly | M | 225.43319859875° |
Mean motion | n | 0.13160545°/day |
Visualization of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy 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 135P/Shoemaker-Levy in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 135P/Shoemaker-Levy in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
---|---|---|---|---|
2023 Nov 28 | 22h 18m 03s | -05° 53’ 40” | 20.01 | Aquarius |
2023 Nov 29 | 22h 18m 37s | -05° 52’ 14” | 20.02 | Aquarius |
2023 Nov 30 | 22h 19m 09s | -05° 50’ 41” | 20.04 | Aquarius |
2023 Dec 01 | 22h 19m 45s | -05° 49’ 04” | 20.05 | Aquarius |
2023 Dec 02 | 22h 20m 20s | -05° 47’ 21” | 20.07 | Aquarius |
2023 Dec 03 | 22h 20m 54s | -05° 45’ 34” | 20.08 | Aquarius |
2023 Dec 04 | 22h 21m 32s | -05° 43’ 42” | 20.10 | Aquarius |
2023 Dec 05 | 22h 22m 09s | -05° 41’ 45” | 20.11 | Aquarius |
2023 Dec 06 | 22h 22m 45s | -05° 39’ 43” | 20.13 | Aquarius |
2023 Dec 07 | 22h 23m 24s | -05° 37’ 36” | 20.14 | Aquarius |
2023 Dec 08 | 22h 24m 02s | -05° 35’ 26” | 20.15 | Aquarius |
2023 Dec 09 | 22h 24m 42s | -05° 33’ 09” | 20.17 | Aquarius |
2023 Dec 10 | 22h 25m 23s | -05° 30’ 47” | 20.18 | Aquarius |
2023 Dec 11 | 22h 26m 03s | -05° 28’ 23” | 20.20 | Aquarius |