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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 6:59  
clear_day Transit: 12:48  
SunsetSet: 18:36 south
sunny DaytimeWhat's Visible Now
Comets » 

Comet 71P/Clark

Altitude: -43.9°   Azimuth: 359.1°   Direction: North

Comet 71P/Clark is currently in the constellation of Cetus. The current Right Ascension of Comet 71P/Clark is 01h 04m 42s and the Declination is -05° 25’ 44” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 71P/Clark is 18.21 (JPL) while the latest observed magnitude is 15.5 (COBS).

01h 04m 42s
-05° 25’ 44”
Cetus
15.5
1.5'
n/a
2023-09-24
18.21

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 71P/Clark from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 95.4°
Max altitude: 33.1°
Azimuth: 264.6°
  • 71P/Clark is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Given its current magnitude, 71P/Clark is visible only through long exposure photography.
  • Go to interactive sky chart

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Available Resources

Comet 71P/Clark Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet 71P/Clark 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 71P/Clark in Cetus on October,01 2023
Map showing Comet 71P/Clark in Cetus on October, 01 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of 71P/Clark
Map showing Comet 71P/Clark in Cetus on October, 01 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 71P/Clark is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

71P/Clark
RA: 01h 04m 42s
Dec: -05° 25’ 44”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet 71P/Clark
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet 71P/Clark?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 71P/Clark in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet 71P/Clark Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet 71P/Clark from Earth is currently 248,127,897 kilometers, equivalent to 1.658633 Astronomical Units. Light takes 13 minutes and 47.6656 seconds to travel from Comet 71P/Clark and arrive to us.

248,127,897
1.658633
13 minutes and 47.6656 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet 71P/Clark 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 71P/Clark 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 71P/Clark from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet 71P/Clark to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 71P/Clark to Earth happens on Sun Jun 11 2017 at a distance of 0.589846 Astronomical Units, or 88,239,685 kilometers:

Sun Jun 11 2017
88,239,685
0.589846

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

Comet 71P/Clark Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 71P/Clark, 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 71P/Clark as a function of time

Comet 71P/Clark Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 71P/Clark at epoch 21 January 2018 00:00 UTC (JD: 2458140.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.49442254
Orbit inclination i 9.44523607°
Perihelion distance q 1.58622783 AU
237,296,306 km
Aphelion distance Q 4.68868724 AU
701,417,630 km
Semi-major axis a 3.13745753 AU
469,356,968 km
Orbital period period 5.5574 years
2,029.8559 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2017-Jun-30 05:14:39
2,457,934.7185 JD
Next perihelion transit 2023-Jan-20 01:47
2,459,964.5744 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 208.92387872794°
Longitude of the ascending node node 59.445278678459°
Mean anomaly M 36.495858534825°
Mean motion n 0.17735249°/day

Visualization of Comet 71P/Clark Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 71P/Clark with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 71P/Clark 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!

Comet 71P/Clark 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 71P/Clark computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 71P/Clark in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 Sep 24 01h 12m 11s -04° 57’ 07” 18.08 Cetus
2023 Sep 25 01h 11m 12s -05° 01’ 13” 18.10 Cetus
2023 Sep 26 01h 10m 14s -05° 05’ 12” 18.11 Cetus
2023 Sep 27 01h 09m 14s -05° 09’ 07” 18.13 Cetus
2023 Sep 28 01h 08m 14s -05° 12’ 57” 18.15 Cetus
2023 Sep 29 01h 07m 14s -05° 16’ 41” 18.16 Cetus
2023 Sep 30 01h 06m 14s -05° 20’ 21” 18.18 Cetus
2023 Oct 01 01h 05m 12s -05° 23’ 53” 18.20 Cetus
2023 Oct 02 01h 04m 13s -05° 27’ 20” 18.22 Cetus
2023 Oct 03 01h 03m 11s -05° 30’ 39” 18.24 Cetus
2023 Oct 04 01h 02m 11s -05° 33’ 52” 18.25 Cetus
2023 Oct 05 01h 01m 10s -05° 36’ 59” 18.27 Cetus
2023 Oct 06 01h 00m 10s -05° 39’ 56” 18.29 Cetus
2023 Oct 07 00h 59m 09s -05° 42’ 47” 18.31 Cetus