Comet 378P/McNaught
Comet 378P/McNaught is currently in the constellation of Taurus, at a distance of 1,187,437,900 kilometers from Earth.
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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 378P/McNaught from Greenwich, United Kingdom (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- 378P/McNaught is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom .
- Right now it is placed in the South-West direction at an altitude of 43° above the horizon.
- Given its current magnitude, 378P/McNaught is visible only through long exposure photography.
- Go to interactive sky chart
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Comet 378P/McNaught Position and Finder Charts
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
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Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 378P/McNaught is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet 378P/McNaught?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 378P/McNaught in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet 378P/McNaught Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet 378P/McNaught from Earth is currently 1,187,437,900 kilometers, equivalent to 7.937532 Astronomical Units. Light takes 1 hours, 6 minutes and 0.8665 seconds to travel from Comet 378P/McNaught and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 378P/McNaught 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 378P/McNaught from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach of Comet 378P/McNaught to Earth
Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 378P/McNaught to Earth happens on Fri Jul 11 2036 at a distance of 2.340041 Astronomical Units, or 350,065,212 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet 378P/McNaught Brightness and Light Curve
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 378P/McNaught, 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 378P/McNaught Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 378P/McNaught at epoch 08 November 2018 00:00 UTC (JD: 2458431.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.46695798 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 19.10950608° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 3.37937081 AU 505,546,679 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
9.30019544 AU 1,391,289,438 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
6.33978313 AU 948,418,059 km |
| Orbital period | period |
15.9632 years 5,830.5568 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2020-Oct-22 15:10:23 2,459,145.1322 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2036-Oct-09 04:32 2,464,975.6890 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 194.31681160431° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 94.519421559834° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 315.93772468774° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.06174367°/day |
Visualization of Comet 378P/McNaught Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 378P/McNaught with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 378P/McNaught 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 378P/McNaught in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 378P/McNaught 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 378P/McNaught computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 378P/McNaught in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 Apr 09 | 03h 38m 26s | +09° 10’ 31” | 20.60 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 10 | 03h 38m 58s | +09° 13’ 48” | 20.60 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 11 | 03h 39m 30s | +09° 17’ 03” | 20.60 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 12 | 03h 40m 04s | +09° 20’ 20” | 20.61 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 13 | 03h 40m 36s | +09° 23’ 34” | 20.61 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 14 | 03h 41m 09s | +09° 26’ 48” | 20.62 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 15 | 03h 41m 43s | +09° 30’ 01” | 20.62 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 16 | 03h 42m 15s | +09° 33’ 12” | 20.62 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 17 | 03h 42m 50s | +09° 36’ 23” | 20.63 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 18 | 03h 43m 23s | +09° 39’ 33” | 20.63 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 19 | 03h 43m 56s | +09° 42’ 42” | 20.64 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 20 | 03h 44m 30s | +09° 45’ 48” | 20.64 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 21 | 03h 45m 05s | +09° 48’ 56” | 20.64 | Taurus |
| 2024 Apr 22 | 03h 45m 39s | +09° 52’ 00” | 20.65 | Taurus |