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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 4:45  
clear_day Transit: 12:57  
SunsetSet: 21:10 south
wb_twilight Nautical TwilightWhat's Visible Now
Comets » 

Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova

Altitude: -7.1°   Azimuth: 271.2°   Direction: West

Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova is currently in the constellation of Virgo. The current Right Ascension of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova is 13h 28m 57s and the Declination is -04° 48’ 59” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova is 30.08 (JPL).

13h 28m 57s
-04° 48’ 59”
Virgo
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
30.08

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 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 94.8°
Max altitude: 33.7°
Azimuth: 265.2°
  • 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Given its current magnitude, 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova 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 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova 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 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova in Virgo on June,07 2023
Map showing Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova in Virgo on June, 07 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova
Map showing Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova in Virgo on June, 07 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova
RA: 13h 28m 57s
Dec: -04° 48’ 59”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova from Earth is currently 523,211,552 kilometers, equivalent to 3.497453 Astronomical Units. Light takes 29 minutes and 5.2459 seconds to travel from Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova and arrive to us.

523,211,552
3.497453
29 minutes and 5.2459 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova 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 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova 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 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova to Earth happens on Sat Feb 11 2017 at a distance of 0.083311 Astronomical Units, or 12,463,083 kilometers:

Sat Feb 11 2017
12,463,083
0.083311

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

Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova, 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 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova as a function of time

Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova at epoch 13 August 2017 00:00 UTC (JD: 2457979.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.82399608
Orbit inclination i 4.24817054°
Perihelion distance q 0.53265015 AU
79,683,329 km
Aphelion distance Q 5.52005760 AU
825,788,865 km
Semi-major axis a 3.02635388 AU
452,736,097 km
Orbital period period 5.2649 years
1,922.9943 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2016-Dec-31 06:49:10
2,457,753.7841 JD
Next perihelion transit 2022-Apr-07 06:40
2,459,676.7784 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 326.34419840517°
Longitude of the ascending node node 88.934602450647°
Mean anomaly M 42.255823560302°
Mean motion n 0.18720805°/day

Visualization of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova 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!

Orbit Diagram of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova
View Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 May 31 13h 31m 49s -04° 57’ 08” 29.92 Virgo
2023 Jun 01 13h 31m 22s -04° 55’ 41” 29.95 Virgo
2023 Jun 02 13h 30m 56s -04° 54’ 20” 29.97 Virgo
2023 Jun 03 13h 30m 30s -04° 53’ 03” 29.99 Virgo
2023 Jun 04 13h 30m 06s -04° 51’ 55” 30.01 Virgo
2023 Jun 05 13h 29m 43s -04° 50’ 51” 30.04 Virgo
2023 Jun 06 13h 29m 21s -04° 49’ 54” 30.06 Virgo
2023 Jun 07 13h 28m 59s -04° 49’ 02” 30.08 Virgo
2023 Jun 08 13h 28m 40s -04° 48’ 17” 30.11 Virgo
2023 Jun 09 13h 28m 21s -04° 47’ 39” 30.13 Virgo
2023 Jun 10 13h 28m 02s -04° 47’ 06” 30.15 Virgo
2023 Jun 11 13h 27m 46s -04° 46’ 37” 30.18 Virgo
2023 Jun 12 13h 27m 29s -04° 46’ 17” 30.20 Virgo
2023 Jun 13 13h 27m 15s -04° 46’ 01” 30.22 Virgo