Comet 46P/Wirtanen
Comet 46P/Wirtanen Sky Charts and Coordinates
This is a simplified sky chart, showing where Comet 46P/Wirtanen is now with respect to the brightest stars and constellations.
More advanced sky charts are available on TheSkyLive for this object: 1) the Online Planetarium which is interactive and allows to select dates and additional objects to visualize; and 2) the Live Position and Data Tracker which provides the highest precision position data and features deep sky imagery from the Digitized Sky Survey.
High Precision Live Sky Chart
Comet 46P/Wirtanen Rise and Set Times
Today's Comet 46P/Wirtanen rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]. All times are relative to the local timezone Europe/London.
Comet 46P/Wirtanen Orbit Diagram
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 46P/Wirtanen with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 46P/Wirtanen 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 46P/Wirtanen in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 46P/Wirtanen Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 46P/Wirtanen computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 46P/Wirtanen in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | MagnitudeMag | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Jun 14 | 18.67 | 23h 50m 26s | -13° 54’ 30” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Jun 15 | 18.63 | 23h 51m 51s | -13° 51’ 35” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Jun 16 | 18.58 | 23h 53m 17s | -13° 48’ 47” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Jun 17 | 18.54 | 23h 54m 42s | -13° 46’ 04” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Jun 18 | 18.49 | 23h 56m 07s | -13° 43’ 26” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Jun 19 | 18.45 | 23h 57m 32s | -13° 40’ 54” | Cetus |
| 2018 Jun 20 | 18.40 | 23h 58m 57s | -13° 38’ 27” | Cetus |
| 2018 Jun 21 | 18.36 | 00h 00m 20s | -13° 36’ 07” | Cetus |
| 2018 Jun 22 | 18.31 | 00h 01m 45s | -13° 33’ 55” | Cetus |
| 2018 Jun 23 | 18.26 | 00h 03m 11s | -13° 31’ 46” | Cetus |
| 2018 Jun 24 | 18.22 | 00h 04m 35s | -13° 29’ 47” | Cetus |
| 2018 Jun 25 | 18.17 | 00h 05m 58s | -13° 27’ 52” | Cetus |
| 2018 Jun 26 | 18.12 | 00h 07m 23s | -13° 26’ 04” | Cetus |
| 2018 Jun 27 | 18.08 | 00h 08m 48s | -13° 24’ 24” | Cetus |
Distance of Comet 46P/Wirtanen from Earth
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 46P/Wirtanen from Earth as a function of time. Distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with a 2 days interval.
The reported distances might be inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of 46P/Wirtanen is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Light Curve of Comet 46P/Wirtanen
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 46P/Wirtanen, 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 46P/Wirtanen Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 46P/Wirtanen at epoch 05 April 2016 00:00 UTC (JD: 2457484.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.65869060 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 11.75181551° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.05429686 AU 157,720,565 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
5.12365692 AU 766,488,168 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
3.08897689 AU 462,104,366 km |
| Orbital period | period |
5.4300 years 1,982.9895 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2018-Dec-13 00:57:41 2,458,465.5401 JD |
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 356.36591055261° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 82.165849297734° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 181.89798725801° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.18154408°/day |
| Closest approach to Earth* | 2018-Dec-17 | |
| Distance of closest approach* | 0.07819404 AU 11,697,662 km |
|
* NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed for the time interval between 2013-Jan-01 and 2075-Dec-31, with a sampling interval of 1 day.