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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 4:50  
clear_day Transit: 12:56  
SunsetSet: 21:02 south
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Comets » 

Comet 255P/Levy

Comet 255P/Levy is currently in the constellation of Lupus.

The current Right Ascension of Comet 255P/Levy is 15h 17m 07s and the Declination is -30° 28’ 40” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 255P/Levy is 31.37 (JPL).

15h 17m 07s
-30° 28’ 40”
Lupus
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
31.37

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 255P/Levy from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 120.4°
Max altitude: 8.1°
Azimuth: 239.5°
  • 255P/Levy is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Given its current magnitude, 255P/Levy 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 255P/Levy Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet 255P/Levy 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 255P/Levy in Lupus on May,30 2023
Map showing Comet 255P/Levy in Lupus on May, 30 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of 255P/Levy
Map showing Comet 255P/Levy in Lupus on May, 30 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 255P/Levy is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

255P/Levy
RA: 15h 17m 07s
Dec: -30° 28’ 40”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet 255P/Levy
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet 255P/Levy?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 255P/Levy in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet 255P/Levy Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet 255P/Levy from Earth is currently 307,114,624 kilometers, equivalent to 2.052934 Astronomical Units. Light takes 17 minutes and 4.4241 seconds to travel from Comet 255P/Levy and arrive to us.

307,114,624
2.052934
17 minutes and 4.4241 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet 255P/Levy 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 255P/Levy 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 255P/Levy from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet 255P/Levy to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 255P/Levy to Earth happens on Tue Oct 23 2057 at a distance of 0.268714 Astronomical Units, or 40,199,113 kilometers:

Tue Oct 23 2057
40,199,113
0.268714

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

Comet 255P/Levy Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 255P/Levy, 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 255P/Levy as a function of time

Comet 255P/Levy Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 255P/Levy at epoch 21 December 2007 00:00 UTC (JD: 2454456.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.67200978
Orbit inclination i 18.33304279°
Perihelion distance q 0.99201756 AU
148,403,715 km
Aphelion distance Q 5.05705042 AU
756,523,976 km
Semi-major axis a 3.02453399 AU
452,463,845 km
Orbital period period 5.2601 years
1,921.2600 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2006-Oct-07 09:13:57
2,454,015.8847 JD
Next perihelion transit 2012-Jan-10 15:28
2,455,937.1446 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 179.59295524389°
Longitude of the ascending node node 279.78004827491°
Mean anomaly M 82.561190982814°
Mean motion n 0.18737704°/day

Visualization of Comet 255P/Levy Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 255P/Levy with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 255P/Levy 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!

Comet 255P/Levy 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 255P/Levy computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 255P/Levy in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 May 23 15h 25m 54s -31° 28’ 33” 31.01 Lupus
2023 May 24 15h 24m 41s -31° 20’ 51” 31.06 Lupus
2023 May 25 15h 23m 29s -31° 13’ 03” 31.11 Lupus
2023 May 26 15h 22m 18s -31° 05’ 12” 31.15 Lupus
2023 May 27 15h 21m 07s -30° 57’ 17” 31.20 Lupus
2023 May 28 15h 19m 59s -30° 49’ 22” 31.25 Lupus
2023 May 29 15h 18m 51s -30° 41’ 22” 31.30 Lupus
2023 May 30 15h 17m 45s -30° 33’ 23” 31.35 Lupus
2023 May 31 15h 16m 41s -30° 25’ 22” 31.39 Lupus
2023 Jun 01 15h 15m 38s -30° 17’ 20” 31.44 Lupus
2023 Jun 02 15h 14m 35s -30° 09’ 18” 31.49 Lupus
2023 Jun 03 15h 13m 36s -30° 01’ 15” 31.54 Lupus
2023 Jun 04 15h 12m 38s -29° 53’ 14” 31.59 Libra
2023 Jun 05 15h 11m 39s -29° 45’ 15” 31.64 Libra