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public  Hutag, Mongolia Hutag, Mongolia  ⓘ
TimezoneAsia/Ulaanbaatar
Sunrise: 5:11 
Transit: 13:13 
Sunset: 21:16
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Comets » 

Comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf

Below the horizon.  Rise: 22:12 | Tran: 23:42 | Set: 1:11
Alt: -61.14°   Az: 81.95°   Direction: East

Comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf is in the constellation of Scorpius, at a distance of 4,858,048,085.0 kilometers from Earth. The current Right Ascension is 17h 24m 49s and the Declination is -38° 22’ 49” (apparent coordinates). The estimated magnitude of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf, computed using JPL Horizons's data, is 27.55).

Finder Charts

The sky charts below show, at different resolutions, the position of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf in the sky. Click on each chart to access the interactive star map tool.

Star map showing the position of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf in the constellation of Scorpius on F, d Y. Field of view: 50x30 degrees. View interactive star map.
Star map showing the position of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf in the constellation of Scorpius on F, d Y. Field of view: 15x9 degrees. View in interactive star map.

The following map uses photographic imagery from the Digitized Sky Survey (DSS) to realistically visualize the precise position of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf against the stars in the background. The horizontal size of the map measures 60 arcminutes. Click on the image to access a more detailed full-screen view.

23P/Brorsen-Metcalf
RA: 17h 23m 04s
Dec: -38° 21’ 29”
Simplified high-resolution deep sky chart showing the current position of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf. Field of view: 60 x 40 arcminutes. Go to the dedicated page

Equatorial Coordinates

Apparent

17h 24m 49s
-38° 22’ 49”
14h 30m 17s
07h 55m 07s

J2000

17h 23m 04s
-38° 21’ 29”

Additional Information

Scorpius
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
27.55

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.

Rise and Set Times

The following table lists today's rise, transit and set times of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf from Hutag, Mongolia (all times relative to the local timezone Asia/Ulaanbaatar):

Azimuth: 128.4°
Max altitude: 2.2°
Azimuth: 231.6°

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.

Distance from Earth

The distance of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf from Earth is currently 4,858,048,085.0 kilometers, equivalent to 32.4740456684 Astronomical Units. Light takes 4h 30m 4.704s to travel from comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf and arrive to us.

4,858,048,085.0
32.4740456684
4h 30m 4.704s

The following graph shows the distance of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf from Earth as a function of time. In the chart the distance is measured in Astronomical Units and the data is sampled with an interval of 1 day.

Chart of the distance of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf from Earth in Astronomical Units (au)
Note: The values in this chart may not be entirely accurate around the time of closest approach for objects passing very close to Earth at high speed (e.g., Near-Earth Objects).

The value of the distance of 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the live position tracker.

Closest Approach to Earth

In the period between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2099, the closest approach of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf to Earth will happen on Tuesday 10 June 2059 at a distance of 1.485167 Astronomical Units, or 222,177,799 kilometers:

Tuesday 10 June 2059
222,177,799
1.485167

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

Light Curve

The following chart shows the light curve of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf, i.e., its apparent magnitude as a function of time. The curve is calculated using the latest ephemerides provided by JPL Horizons. The magnitude data is sampled with the interval of 2 days. Because of this sampling, inaccuracies may occur for objects that have large variations of brightness over a few days. For comets, large discrepancies can arise between the calculated brightness and the observations due to their highly dynamic, and not always precisely predictable, behavior.

Chart of the magnitude of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf as a function of time

Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf at epoch September, 30 1989 00:00 UTC (JD: 2447800.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.97195226
Orbit inclination i 19.33394047°
Perihelion distance q 0.47875271 AU
71,620,386 km
Aphelion distance Q 33.65966096 AU
5,035,413,618 km
Semi-major axis a 17.06920683 AU
2,553,517,002 km
Orbital period period 70.5226 years
25,758.3736 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp September 11, 1989
2,447,781.4374 JD
Next perihelion transit March 21, 2060
2,473,539.8111 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 129.61068367887°
Longitude of the ascending node node 311.58546221411°
Mean anomaly M 0.26641915255031°
Mean motion n 0.01397604°/day

Orbit Visualization

The following chart is a 3D animated visualization of the orbit of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf relative to the other major objects in the Solar System. You can access more advanced features using our 3D Solar System Viewer.

15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of comet 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Apparent celestial coordinates are provided.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
Jun 27 2025 17h 25m 52s -38° 24’ 35” 27.55 Scorpius
Jun 28 2025 17h 25m 43s -38° 24’ 23” 27.55 Scorpius
Jun 29 2025 17h 25m 34s -38° 24’ 09” 27.55 Scorpius
Jun 30 2025 17h 25m 26s -38° 23’ 54” 27.55 Scorpius
Jul 01 2025 17h 25m 17s -38° 23’ 40” 27.55 Scorpius
Jul 02 2025 17h 25m 09s -38° 23’ 25” 27.55 Scorpius
Jul 03 2025 17h 25m 01s -38° 23’ 09” 27.55 Scorpius
Jul 04 2025 17h 24m 52s -38° 22’ 54” 27.55 Scorpius
Jul 05 2025 17h 24m 44s -38° 22’ 37” 27.55 Scorpius
Jul 06 2025 17h 24m 36s -38° 22’ 20” 27.55 Scorpius
Jul 07 2025 17h 24m 28s -38° 22’ 03” 27.55 Scorpius
Jul 08 2025 17h 24m 20s -38° 21’ 46” 27.55 Scorpius
Jul 09 2025 17h 24m 12s -38° 21’ 27” 27.55 Scorpius
Jul 10 2025 17h 24m 04s -38° 21’ 08” 27.55 Scorpius

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