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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 6:44  
clear_day Transit: 12:51  
SunsetSet: 18:57 south
sunny DaytimeWhat's Visible Now
Comets » 

Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck

Altitude: 31.5°   Azimuth: 256.7°   Direction: West-South-West

Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck is currently in the constellation of Cancer. The current Right Ascension of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck is 08h 06m 19s and the Declination is +16° 37’ 49” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck is 23.76 (JPL).

08h 06m 19s
+16° 37’ 49”
Cancer
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
23.76

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 53P/Van Biesbroeck from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 73.4°
Max altitude: 55.2°
Azimuth: 286.6°
  • 53P/Van Biesbroeck is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Right now it is placed in the West-South-West direction at an altitude of 31° above the horizon.
  • Given its current magnitude, 53P/Van Biesbroeck 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 53P/Van Biesbroeck Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck 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 53P/Van Biesbroeck in Cancer on September,22 2023
Map showing Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck in Cancer on September, 22 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of 53P/Van Biesbroeck
Map showing Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck in Cancer on September, 22 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

53P/Van Biesbroeck
RA: 08h 06m 19s
Dec: +16° 37’ 49”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck from Earth is currently 1,304,894,854 kilometers, equivalent to 8.722683 Astronomical Units. Light takes 1 hours, 12 minutes and 32.6607 seconds to travel from Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck and arrive to us.

1,304,894,854
8.722683
1 hours, 12 minutes and 32.6607 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck 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 53P/Van Biesbroeck 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 53P/Van Biesbroeck from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck to Earth happens on Tue Jul 31 2091 at a distance of 0.905012 Astronomical Units, or 135,387,815 kilometers:

Tue Jul 31 2091
135,387,815
0.905012

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

Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck, 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 53P/Van Biesbroeck as a function of time

Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck at epoch 08 August 2011 00:00 UTC (JD: 2455782.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.55107446
Orbit inclination i 6.61125410°
Perihelion distance q 2.42621835 AU
362,957,100 km
Aphelion distance Q 8.38278293 AU
1,254,046,479 km
Semi-major axis a 5.40450064 AU
808,501,789 km
Orbital period period 12.5644 years
4,589.1451 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2016-Apr-30 19:11:59
2,457,509.3000 JD
Next perihelion transit 2028-Nov-22 22:40
2,462,098.4450 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 134.26546520817°
Longitude of the ascending node node 148.89779930287°
Mean anomaly M 224.5394756349°
Mean motion n 0.07844598°/day

Visualization of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck 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 53P/Van Biesbroeck
View Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 53P/Van Biesbroeck in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 Sep 15 08h 03m 37s +16° 47’ 26” 23.80 Cancer
2023 Sep 16 08h 04m 00s +16° 46’ 08” 23.79 Cancer
2023 Sep 17 08h 04m 22s +16° 44’ 49” 23.79 Cancer
2023 Sep 18 08h 04m 44s +16° 43’ 32” 23.79 Cancer
2023 Sep 19 08h 05m 06s +16° 42’ 15” 23.78 Cancer
2023 Sep 20 08h 05m 27s +16° 40’ 59” 23.78 Cancer
2023 Sep 21 08h 05m 48s +16° 39’ 42” 23.77 Cancer
2023 Sep 22 08h 06m 08s +16° 38’ 27” 23.77 Cancer
2023 Sep 23 08h 06m 29s +16° 37’ 13” 23.76 Cancer
2023 Sep 24 08h 06m 50s +16° 35’ 58” 23.76 Cancer
2023 Sep 25 08h 07m 09s +16° 34’ 45” 23.76 Cancer
2023 Sep 26 08h 07m 28s +16° 33’ 33” 23.75 Cancer
2023 Sep 27 08h 07m 48s +16° 32’ 21” 23.75 Cancer
2023 Sep 28 08h 08m 05s +16° 31’ 09” 23.74 Cancer