Comet 66P/du Toit
Comet 66P/du Toit Sky Charts and Coordinates
This is a simplified sky chart, showing where Comet 66P/du Toit 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
The Observed Magnitude and Coma Diameter values are derived from the Comet Observers Database by averaging the values reported in recent observations (more recent than 4 days), when available. The Estimated Magnitude comes from the JPL Horizons ephemerides service and might be inaccurate given the highly dynamic and unpredictable behvior of comets. When available please refer to the Observed Magnitude value and consider the Estimated 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.
Comet 66P/du Toit Rise and Set Times
Today's Comet 66P/du Toit rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]. All times are relative to the Europe/London timezone.
Comet 66P/du Toit Orbit Diagram
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 66P/du Toit with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 66P/du Toit 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 66P/du Toit in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 66P/du Toit Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 66P/du Toit computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 66P/du Toit in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 Jan 15 | 00h 29m 53s | +05° 01’ 24” | 18.86 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 16 | 00h 30m 50s | +05° 10’ 08” | 18.89 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 17 | 00h 31m 46s | +05° 18’ 51” | 18.91 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 18 | 00h 32m 43s | +05° 27’ 34” | 18.94 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 19 | 00h 33m 39s | +05° 36’ 18” | 18.97 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 20 | 00h 34m 37s | +05° 45’ 00” | 18.99 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 21 | 00h 35m 35s | +05° 53’ 41” | 19.02 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 22 | 00h 36m 33s | +06° 02’ 24” | 19.04 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 23 | 00h 37m 32s | +06° 11’ 04” | 19.07 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 24 | 00h 38m 30s | +06° 19’ 45” | 19.09 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 25 | 00h 39m 29s | +06° 28’ 26” | 19.12 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 26 | 00h 40m 27s | +06° 37’ 05” | 19.14 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 27 | 00h 41m 27s | +06° 45’ 46” | 19.16 | Pisces |
| 2019 Jan 28 | 00h 42m 28s | +06° 54’ 24” | 19.19 | Pisces |
Distance of Comet 66P/du Toit from Earth
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 66P/du Toit 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 66P/du Toit is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Light Curve of Comet 66P/du Toit
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 66P/du Toit, 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 66P/du Toit Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 66P/du Toit at epoch 05 August 2014 00:00 UTC (JD: 2456875.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.78651387 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 18.66828992° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.28542754 AU 192,297,224 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
10.75683066 AU 1,609,198,966 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
6.02112910 AU 900,748,095 km |
| Orbital period | period |
14.7700 years 5,396.5392 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2018-May-20 19:21:41 2,458,259.3067 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2033-Feb-27 08:18 2,463,655.8459 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 257.34079172625° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 22.016235377922° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 267.68705572524° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.06670942°/day |
| Closest approach to Earth* | 2018-May-18 | |
| Distance of closest approach* | 0.89600267 AU 134,040,092 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.