Comet 46P/Wirtanen
Comet 46P/Wirtanen is currently in the constellation of Cetus, at a distance of 340,831,604 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 46P/Wirtanen from Greenwich, United Kingdom (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- 46P/Wirtanen is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom .
- Given its current magnitude, 46P/Wirtanen is visible only through long exposure photography.
- Go to interactive sky chart
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Comet 46P/Wirtanen 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 46P/Wirtanen is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet 46P/Wirtanen?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 46P/Wirtanen in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet 46P/Wirtanen Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet 46P/Wirtanen from Earth is currently 340,831,604 kilometers, equivalent to 2.278319 Astronomical Units. Light takes 18 minutes and 56.8919 seconds to travel from Comet 46P/Wirtanen and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 46P/Wirtanen 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 46P/Wirtanen from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach of Comet 46P/Wirtanen to Earth
Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 46P/Wirtanen to Earth happens on Mon Dec 17 2018 at a distance of 0.077509 Astronomical Units, or 11,595,162 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet 46P/Wirtanen Brightness and Light Curve
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 12 December 2018 00:00 UTC (JD: 2458465.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
Element | Symbol | Value |
---|---|---|
Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.65875968 |
Orbit inclination | i | 11.74759189° |
Perihelion distance | q | 1.05535577 AU 157,878,976 km |
Aphelion distance | Q |
5.13005504 AU 767,445,312 km |
Semi-major axis | a |
3.09270540 AU 462,662,144 km |
Orbital period | period |
5.4390 years 1,986.5809 days |
Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2018-Dec-12 22:20:55 2,458,465.4312 JD |
Next perihelion transit | 2024-May-21 12:17 2,460,452.0121 JD |
|
Argument of perihelion | peri | 356.34109457074° |
Longitude of the ascending node | node | 82.157638993407° |
Mean anomaly | M | 0.012467187040873° |
Mean motion | n | 0.18121588°/day |
Visualization of Comet 46P/Wirtanen Orbit
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 15 Days 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 | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
---|---|---|---|---|
2024 Mar 12 | 00h 24m 38s | -04° 25’ 39” | 18.96 | Pisces |
2024 Mar 13 | 00h 27m 28s | -04° 04’ 05” | 18.94 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 14 | 00h 30m 19s | -03° 42’ 24” | 18.93 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 15 | 00h 33m 10s | -03° 20’ 32” | 18.91 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 16 | 00h 36m 02s | -02° 58’ 33” | 18.89 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 17 | 00h 38m 57s | -02° 36’ 24” | 18.88 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 18 | 00h 41m 52s | -02° 14’ 08” | 18.86 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 19 | 00h 44m 48s | -01° 51’ 43” | 18.84 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 20 | 00h 47m 45s | -01° 29’ 12” | 18.82 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 21 | 00h 50m 44s | -01° 06’ 30” | 18.81 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 22 | 00h 53m 44s | -00° 43’ 42” | 18.79 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 23 | 00h 56m 44s | -00° 20’ 47” | 18.77 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 24 | 00h 59m 45s | +00° 02’ 14” | 18.76 | Cetus |
2024 Mar 25 | 01h 02m 48s | +00° 25’ 24” | 18.74 | Cetus |