Comet 217P/LINEAR
Comet 217P/LINEAR Sky Charts and Coordinates
This is a simplified sky chart, showing where Comet 217P/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
Comet 217P/LINEAR Rise and Set Times
Today's Comet 217P/LINEAR rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]. All times are relative to the local timezone Europe/London.
Comet 217P/LINEAR Orbit Diagram
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 217P/LINEAR with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 217P/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 217P/LINEAR in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 217P/LINEAR Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 217P/LINEAR computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 217P/LINEAR in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | MagnitudeMag | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 Aug 12 | 29.56 | 21h 41m 21s | -24° 04’ 37” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 13 | 29.57 | 21h 40m 33s | -24° 06’ 38” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 14 | 29.58 | 21h 39m 47s | -24° 08’ 34” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 15 | 29.58 | 21h 38m 59s | -24° 10’ 26” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 16 | 29.59 | 21h 38m 12s | -24° 12’ 12” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 17 | 29.61 | 21h 37m 27s | -24° 13’ 57” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 18 | 29.62 | 21h 36m 39s | -24° 15’ 34” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 19 | 29.63 | 21h 35m 53s | -24° 17’ 09” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 20 | 29.64 | 21h 35m 08s | -24° 18’ 39” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 21 | 29.65 | 21h 34m 22s | -24° 20’ 04” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 22 | 29.66 | 21h 33m 35s | -24° 21’ 25” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 23 | 29.67 | 21h 32m 50s | -24° 22’ 41” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 24 | 29.68 | 21h 32m 06s | -24° 23’ 53” | Capricornus |
| 2017 Aug 25 | 29.69 | 21h 31m 21s | -24° 24’ 59” | Capricornus |
Distance of Comet 217P/LINEAR from Earth
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 217P/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 217P/LINEAR is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Light Curve of Comet 217P/LINEAR
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 217P/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 217P/LINEAR Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 217P/LINEAR at epoch 31 January 2009 00:00 UTC (JD: 2454863.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.68964811 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 12.88194578° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.22359285 AU 183,046,886 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
6.66160392 AU 996,561,765 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
3.94259839 AU 589,804,325 km |
| Orbital period | period |
7.8300 years 2,859.3824 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2009-Sep-08 23:28:12 2,455,083.4779 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2017-Jul-08 08:38 2,457,942.8603 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 246.76962462714° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 125.62162409946° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 332.30448990594° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.12590131°/day |
| Closest approach to Earth* | 2043-Mar-08 | |
| Distance of closest approach* | 0.87549633 AU 130,972,388 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.