Comet 209P/LINEAR
Comet 209P/LINEAR Sky Charts and Coordinates
This is a simplified sky chart, showing where Comet 209P/LINEAR is now with respect to the brightest stars and constellations.
More advanced sky charts are available on TheSkyLive for this object: 1) the Online Planetarium which is interactive and allows to select dates and additional objects to visualize; and 2) the Live Position and Data Tracker which provides the highest precision position data and features deep sky imagery from the Digitized Sky Survey.
High Precision Live Sky Chart
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 behvior 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.
Comet 209P/LINEAR Rise and Set Times
Today's Comet 209P/LINEAR rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]. All times are relative to the Europe/London timezone.
Comet 209P/LINEAR Orbit Diagram
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 209P/LINEAR with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 209P/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 209P/LINEAR in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 209P/LINEAR Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 209P/LINEAR computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 209P/LINEAR in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Sep 19 | 06h 49m 30s | +29° 53’ 30” | 26.62 | Gemini |
| 2018 Sep 20 | 06h 50m 39s | +29° 56’ 57” | 26.59 | Gemini |
| 2018 Sep 21 | 06h 51m 47s | +30° 00’ 25” | 26.56 | Gemini |
| 2018 Sep 22 | 06h 52m 54s | +30° 03’ 59” | 26.53 | Gemini |
| 2018 Sep 23 | 06h 54m 02s | +30° 07’ 33” | 26.50 | Gemini |
| 2018 Sep 24 | 06h 55m 09s | +30° 11’ 12” | 26.47 | Gemini |
| 2018 Sep 25 | 06h 56m 16s | +30° 14’ 54” | 26.44 | Gemini |
| 2018 Sep 26 | 06h 57m 21s | +30° 18’ 41” | 26.41 | Gemini |
| 2018 Sep 27 | 06h 58m 27s | +30° 22’ 30” | 26.38 | Gemini |
| 2018 Sep 28 | 06h 59m 32s | +30° 26’ 21” | 26.35 | Gemini |
| 2018 Sep 29 | 07h 00m 38s | +30° 30’ 19” | 26.31 | Gemini |
| 2018 Sep 30 | 07h 01m 41s | +30° 34’ 18” | 26.28 | Gemini |
| 2018 Oct 01 | 07h 02m 45s | +30° 38’ 24” | 26.25 | Gemini |
| 2018 Oct 02 | 07h 03m 48s | +30° 42’ 33” | 26.22 | Gemini |
Distance of Comet 209P/LINEAR from Earth
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 209P/LINEAR from Earth as a function of time. Distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with a 2 days interval.
The reported distances might be inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of 209P/LINEAR is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Light Curve of Comet 209P/LINEAR
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 209P/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 209P/LINEAR Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 209P/LINEAR at epoch 22 June 2011 00:00 UTC (JD: 2455735.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.69256369 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 19.48032030° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 0.90098697 AU 134,785,732 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
4.96030487 AU 742,051,048 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
2.93064592 AU 438,418,390 km |
| Orbital period | period |
5.0200 years 1,832.4978 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2009-Apr-17 12:44:57 2,454,939.0312 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2014-Apr-24 00:41 2,456,771.5290 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 150.52958376952° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 65.393856991194° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 156.46881922669° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.19645317°/day |
| Closest approach to Earth* | 2014-May-29 | |
| Distance of closest approach* | 0.05555069 AU 8,310,265 km |
|
* NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed for the time interval between 2013-Jan-01 and 2075-Dec-31, with a sampling interval of 1 day.