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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 7:51  
clear_day Transit: 11:50  
SunsetSet: 15:49 south
sleep NighttimeWhat's Visible Now?
Comets » 

Comet 199P/Shoemaker

Altitude: -68.0°   Azimuth: 317.9°   Direction: North-West

Comet 199P/Shoemaker is currently in the constellation of Sagittarius.

The current Right Ascension of Comet 199P/Shoemaker is 20h 11m 31s and the Declination is -33° 30’ 50” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 199P/Shoemaker is 17.80 (JPL).

20h 11m 31s
-33° 30’ 50”
Sagittarius
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
17.80

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 199P/Shoemaker from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 123.5°
Max altitude: 5.0°
Azimuth: 236.5°
  • 199P/Shoemaker is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Given its current magnitude, 199P/Shoemaker 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 199P/Shoemaker Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet 199P/Shoemaker 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 199P/Shoemaker in Sagittarius on December,09 2023
Map showing Comet 199P/Shoemaker in Sagittarius on December, 09 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of 199P/Shoemaker
Map showing Comet 199P/Shoemaker in Sagittarius on December, 09 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 199P/Shoemaker is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

199P/Shoemaker
RA: 20h 11m 31s
Dec: -33° 30’ 50”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet 199P/Shoemaker
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet 199P/Shoemaker?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 199P/Shoemaker in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet 199P/Shoemaker Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet 199P/Shoemaker from Earth is currently 551,256,390 kilometers, equivalent to 3.684921 Astronomical Units. Light takes 30 minutes and 38.7934 seconds to travel from Comet 199P/Shoemaker and arrive to us.

551,256,390
3.684921
30 minutes and 38.7934 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet 199P/Shoemaker 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 199P/Shoemaker 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 199P/Shoemaker from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet 199P/Shoemaker to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 199P/Shoemaker to Earth happens on Mon Jul 1 2080 at a distance of 1.904339 Astronomical Units, or 284,885,118 kilometers:

Mon Jul 1 2080
284,885,118
1.904339

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

Comet 199P/Shoemaker Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 199P/Shoemaker, 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 199P/Shoemaker as a function of time

Comet 199P/Shoemaker Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 199P/Shoemaker at epoch 09 February 2009 00:00 UTC (JD: 2454872.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.50778118
Orbit inclination i 24.76497749°
Perihelion distance q 2.93541074 AU
439,131,198 km
Aphelion distance Q 8.99184864 AU
1,345,161,413 km
Semi-major axis a 5.96362969 AU
892,146,306 km
Orbital period period 14.5638 years
5,319.4218 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2009-Apr-09 21:34:16
2,454,931.3988 JD
Next perihelion transit 2023-Nov-02 07:41
2,460,250.8206 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 191.93508802605°
Longitude of the ascending node node 92.948125206371°
Mean anomaly M 356.01393368245°
Mean motion n 0.06767653°/day

Visualization of Comet 199P/Shoemaker Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 199P/Shoemaker with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 199P/Shoemaker 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 199P/Shoemaker
View Comet 199P/Shoemaker in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet 199P/Shoemaker 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 199P/Shoemaker computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 199P/Shoemaker in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 Dec 02 19h 58m 50s -33° 51’ 43” 17.72 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 03 20h 00m 38s -33° 49’ 00” 17.73 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 04 20h 02m 25s -33° 46’ 12” 17.74 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 05 20h 04m 12s -33° 43’ 19” 17.75 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 06 20h 05m 58s -33° 40’ 23” 17.77 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 07 20h 07m 46s -33° 37’ 21” 17.78 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 08 20h 09m 34s -33° 34’ 14” 17.79 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 09 20h 11m 22s -33° 31’ 04” 17.80 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 10 20h 13m 10s -33° 27’ 48” 17.81 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 11 20h 14m 58s -33° 24’ 29” 17.82 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 12 20h 16m 46s -33° 21’ 05” 17.83 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 13 20h 18m 34s -33° 17’ 36” 17.84 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 14 20h 20m 23s -33° 14’ 04” 17.85 Sagittarius
2023 Dec 15 20h 22m 13s -33° 10’ 27” 17.86 Sagittarius