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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 7:04  
clear_day Transit: 12:47  
SunsetSet: 18:30 south
sunny DaytimeWhat's Visible Now
Comets » 

Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux

Altitude: -9.7°   Azimuth: 117.5°   Direction: East-South-East

Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux is currently in the constellation of Sagittarius. The current Right Ascension of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux is 19h 52m 01s and the Declination is -24° 29’ 30” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux is 20.93 (JPL).

19h 52m 01s
-24° 29’ 30”
Sagittarius
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
20.93

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 49P/Arend-Rigaux from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 114.5°
Max altitude: 14.0°
Azimuth: 245.5°
  • 49P/Arend-Rigaux is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Given its current magnitude, 49P/Arend-Rigaux 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 49P/Arend-Rigaux Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux 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 49P/Arend-Rigaux in Sagittarius on October,04 2023
Map showing Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux in Sagittarius on October, 04 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of 49P/Arend-Rigaux
Map showing Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux in Sagittarius on October, 04 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

49P/Arend-Rigaux
RA: 19h 52m 01s
Dec: -24° 29’ 30”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux from Earth is currently 603,327,186 kilometers, equivalent to 4.032993 Astronomical Units. Light takes 33 minutes and 32.4829 seconds to travel from Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux and arrive to us.

603,327,186
4.032993
33 minutes and 32.4829 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux 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 49P/Arend-Rigaux 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 49P/Arend-Rigaux from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux to Earth happens on Sat Dec 27 2031 at a distance of 0.559458 Astronomical Units, or 83,693,666 kilometers:

Sat Dec 27 2031
83,693,666
0.559458

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

Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux, 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 49P/Arend-Rigaux as a function of time

Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux at epoch 26 August 2011 00:00 UTC (JD: 2455800.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.60040567
Orbit inclination i 19.04992263°
Perihelion distance q 1.42383153 AU
213,002,166 km
Aphelion distance Q 5.70255344 AU
853,089,854 km
Semi-major axis a 3.56319249 AU
533,046,010 km
Orbital period period 6.7262 years
2,456.7296 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2011-Oct-19 01:50:06
2,455,853.5765 JD
Next perihelion transit 2018-Jul-10 19:20
2,458,310.3060 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 332.787692485°
Longitude of the ascending node node 118.87791451082°
Mean anomaly M 352.22237232555°
Mean motion n 0.14653628°/day

Visualization of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux 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 49P/Arend-Rigaux
View Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 49P/Arend-Rigaux in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 Sep 27 19h 52m 10s -24° 22’ 17” 20.90 Sagittarius
2023 Sep 28 19h 52m 06s -24° 23’ 25” 20.90 Sagittarius
2023 Sep 29 19h 52m 02s -24° 24’ 29” 20.90 Sagittarius
2023 Sep 30 19h 52m 00s -24° 25’ 30” 20.91 Sagittarius
2023 Oct 01 19h 51m 57s -24° 26’ 27” 20.91 Sagittarius
2023 Oct 02 19h 51m 57s -24° 27’ 21” 20.91 Sagittarius
2023 Oct 03 19h 51m 57s -24° 28’ 14” 20.92 Sagittarius
2023 Oct 04 19h 52m 00s -24° 29’ 02” 20.92 Sagittarius
2023 Oct 05 19h 52m 01s -24° 29’ 47” 20.93 Sagittarius
2023 Oct 06 19h 52m 05s -24° 30’ 29” 20.93 Sagittarius
2023 Oct 07 19h 52m 09s -24° 31’ 06” 20.93 Sagittarius
2023 Oct 08 19h 52m 14s -24° 31’ 42” 20.94 Sagittarius
2023 Oct 09 19h 52m 22s -24° 32’ 15” 20.94 Sagittarius
2023 Oct 10 19h 52m 28s -24° 32’ 44” 20.95 Sagittarius