Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup
Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup is currently in the constellation of Orion. The current Right Ascension of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup is 05h 11m 34s and the Declination is +09° 14’ 04” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup is 22.53 (JPL).
Summary of key facts about Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup [tip: you can also create a Quick Access page for this data if you access it frequently and would like to have a simpler view]:
- 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change].
- Given its current magnitude, 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup is visible only through long exposure photography.
- See also 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup rise and set times.
- 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.
Additional information about Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup available on TheSkyLive:
Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup Position and Finder Charts
Below we provide Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup 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.
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen
Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup from Earth is currently 524,245,988 kilometers, equivalent to 3.504368 Astronomical Units. Light takes 29 minutes and 8.6964 seconds to travel from Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup 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.
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 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest approach of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup to Earth
Between January 2013 and December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup to Earth happens on Thu Apr 15 2083 at a distance of 0.309257 Astronomical Units, or 46,264,246 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup brightness
The current visual magnitude of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup is 22.53.
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 behavior 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.
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup, 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 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup rise and set times
Location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]
Latitude: 51° 28’ 47” N
Longitude: 0° 00’ 00” E
Timezone: Europe/London
Today's Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change] are the following (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
The rise and set times are defined as the time at which the upper limb of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup touches the horizon, considering the effect of the atmospheric refraction. As the atmospheric conditions cannot be modeled precisely the times reported here should be considered correct with an approximation of few minutes.
Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup at epoch 21 May 2010 00:00 UTC (JD: 2455338.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.63361831 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 22.39378577° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.11338998 AU 166,560,771 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
4.96436995 AU 742,659,175 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
3.03887996 AU 454,609,973 km |
| Orbital period | period |
5.2976 years 1,934.9455 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2008-Mar-23 15:57:23 2,454,549.1649 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2013-Jul-10 14:38 2,456,484.1104 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 1.6513619696626° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 211.64444199051° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 146.85718286599° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.18605175°/day |
Visualization of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup 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 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 Sep 21 | 05h 10m 18s | +09° 52’ 05” | 22.64 | Orion |
| 2022 Sep 22 | 05h 10m 32s | +09° 47’ 12” | 22.63 | Orion |
| 2022 Sep 23 | 05h 10m 44s | +09° 42’ 18” | 22.61 | Orion |
| 2022 Sep 24 | 05h 10m 54s | +09° 37’ 18” | 22.60 | Orion |
| 2022 Sep 25 | 05h 11m 05s | +09° 32’ 17” | 22.58 | Orion |
| 2022 Sep 26 | 05h 11m 15s | +09° 27’ 10” | 22.57 | Orion |
| 2022 Sep 27 | 05h 11m 24s | +09° 22’ 00” | 22.56 | Orion |
| 2022 Sep 28 | 05h 11m 30s | +09° 16’ 46” | 22.54 | Orion |
| 2022 Sep 29 | 05h 11m 38s | +09° 11’ 29” | 22.53 | Orion |
| 2022 Sep 30 | 05h 11m 43s | +09° 06’ 08” | 22.51 | Orion |
| 2022 Oct 01 | 05h 11m 47s | +09° 00’ 43” | 22.50 | Orion |
| 2022 Oct 02 | 05h 11m 49s | +08° 55’ 17” | 22.49 | Orion |
| 2022 Oct 03 | 05h 11m 52s | +08° 49’ 45” | 22.47 | Orion |
| 2022 Oct 04 | 05h 11m 53s | +08° 44’ 11” | 22.46 | Orion |