Your Guide to the Solar System and the Night Sky
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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 4:52  
clear_day Transit: 12:55  
SunsetSet: 20:59 south
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Breakng! newly discovered Supernova 2023ixf in the Pinwheel Galaxy is the closest supernova observed in the latest decade. It can become bright enough to be visible by amateur astronomers. Check out information and detailed finder chart.
Comets » 

Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS

Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS is currently in the constellation of Carina.

The current Right Ascension of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS is 07h 39m 01s and the Declination is -52° 48’ 00” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS is 27.56 (JPL).

07h 39m 01s
-52° 48’ 00”
Carina
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
27.56

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 161P/Hartley-IRAS from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Today Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS is not visible from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt

  • 161P/Hartley-IRAS is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Given its current magnitude, 161P/Hartley-IRAS 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.

Available Resources

Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS 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.

Finder chart of 161P/Hartley-IRAS in Carina on May,28 2023
Map showing Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS in Carina on May, 28 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of 161P/Hartley-IRAS
Map showing Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS in Carina on May, 28 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

161P/Hartley-IRAS
RA: 07h 39m 01s
Dec: -52° 48’ 00”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS from Earth is currently 1,407,641,540 kilometers, equivalent to 9.409503 Astronomical Units. Light takes 1 hours, 18 minutes and 15.3868 seconds to travel from Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS and arrive to us.

1,407,641,540
9.409503
1 hours, 18 minutes and 15.3868 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS 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.

Chart of the distance of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS from Earth in Astronomical Units (au)

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 161P/Hartley-IRAS from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS to Earth happens on Fri Oct 2 2026 at a distance of 0.505482 Astronomical Units, or 75,618,969 kilometers:

Fri Oct 2 2026
75,618,969
0.505482

NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.

Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS, 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.

Chart of the magnitude of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS as a function of time

Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS at epoch 03 July 2004 00:00 UTC (JD: 2453190.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.83508810
Orbit inclination i 95.69805020°
Perihelion distance q 1.27482939 AU
190,711,762 km
Aphelion distance Q 14.18590285 AU
2,122,180,865 km
Semi-major axis a 7.73036612 AU
1,156,446,313 km
Orbital period period 21.4936 years
7,850.5218 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2005-Jun-20 20:24:46
2,453,542.3505 JD
Next perihelion transit 2026-Dec-18 08:56
2,461,392.8723 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 47.091452375467°
Longitude of the ascending node node 1.3981653712267°
Mean anomaly M 343.86525171541°
Mean motion n 0.04585682°/day

Visualization of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS 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!

Orbit Diagram of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS
View Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 161P/Hartley-IRAS in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 May 21 07h 36m 47s -53° 18’ 03” 27.57 Carina
2023 May 22 07h 37m 05s -53° 13’ 38” 27.57 Carina
2023 May 23 07h 37m 22s -53° 09’ 19” 27.57 Carina
2023 May 24 07h 37m 41s -53° 05’ 03” 27.56 Carina
2023 May 25 07h 37m 59s -53° 00’ 51” 27.56 Carina
2023 May 26 07h 38m 18s -52° 56’ 43” 27.56 Carina
2023 May 27 07h 38m 38s -52° 52’ 38” 27.56 Carina
2023 May 28 07h 38m 57s -52° 48’ 38” 27.56 Carina
2023 May 29 07h 39m 19s -52° 44’ 43” 27.55 Carina
2023 May 30 07h 39m 39s -52° 40’ 51” 27.55 Carina
2023 May 31 07h 40m 00s -52° 37’ 05” 27.55 Carina
2023 Jun 01 07h 40m 23s -52° 33’ 21” 27.55 Carina
2023 Jun 02 07h 40m 45s -52° 29’ 44” 27.55 Carina
2023 Jun 03 07h 41m 08s -52° 26’ 09” 27.54 Carina