How to support us
Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR Ephemeris Calculator
Compute the position of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR for any date and time between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100 and display the results on an interactive star map.
In Evidence
Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR
Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR is currently in the constellation of Scorpius. The current Right Ascension of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR is 16h 16m 22s and the Declination is -21° 43’ 51” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR is 26.71 (JPL).
Today's rise, transit and set times of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change] (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change].
- Given its current magnitude, 146P/Shoemaker-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.
Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR Position and Finder Charts
Below we provide Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR 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 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR from Earth is currently 577,617,345 kilometers, equivalent to 3.861133 Astronomical Units. Light takes 32 minutes and 6.7241 seconds to travel from Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-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 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR to Earth
Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR to Earth happens on Tue Oct 21 2081 at a distance of 0.563059 Astronomical Units, or 84,232,435 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR Brightness
The current visual magnitude of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR is 26.71.
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 behavior 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.
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-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.
Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR at epoch 28 June 2013 00:00 UTC (JD: 2456472.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.64672666 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 23.09409337° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.42576921 AU 213,292,039 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
6.64599299 AU 994,226,402 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
4.03588110 AU 603,759,221 km |
| Orbital period | period |
8.1080 years 2,961.4607 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2016-Jun-29 13:33:46 2,457,569.0651 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2024-Aug-08 00:37 2,460,530.5258 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 317.06895071551° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 53.447243884983° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 226.69975274417° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.12156163°/day |
Visualization of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR 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 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 Mar 15 | 16h 16m 26s | -21° 26’ 56” | 26.86 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 16 | 16h 16m 28s | -21° 29’ 08” | 26.84 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 17 | 16h 16m 31s | -21° 31’ 18” | 26.82 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 18 | 16h 16m 32s | -21° 33’ 27” | 26.80 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 19 | 16h 16m 32s | -21° 35’ 35” | 26.78 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 20 | 16h 16m 31s | -21° 37’ 41” | 26.76 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 21 | 16h 16m 28s | -21° 39’ 47” | 26.74 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 22 | 16h 16m 26s | -21° 41’ 52” | 26.73 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 23 | 16h 16m 22s | -21° 43’ 54” | 26.71 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 24 | 16h 16m 15s | -21° 45’ 56” | 26.69 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 25 | 16h 16m 09s | -21° 47’ 57” | 26.67 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 26 | 16h 16m 02s | -21° 49’ 55” | 26.65 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 27 | 16h 15m 54s | -21° 51’ 53” | 26.63 | Scorpius |
| 2023 Mar 28 | 16h 15m 44s | -21° 53’ 49” | 26.61 | Scorpius |