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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 4:46  
clear_day Transit: 12:57  
SunsetSet: 21:08 south
wb_twilight Astronomical TwilightWhat's Visible Now
Comets » 

Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa

Altitude: -25.4°   Azimuth: 14.8°   Direction: North-North-East

Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa is currently in the constellation of Aries. The current Right Ascension of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa is 02h 38m 22s and the Declination is +12° 04’ 36” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa is 15.82 (JPL).

02h 38m 22s
+12° 04’ 36”
Aries
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
15.82

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 72P/Denning-Fujikawa from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 78.4°
Max altitude: 50.3°
Azimuth: 281.9°
  • 72P/Denning-Fujikawa is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Given its current magnitude, 72P/Denning-Fujikawa 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 72P/Denning-Fujikawa Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa 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 72P/Denning-Fujikawa in Aries on June,05 2023
Map showing Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa in Aries on June, 05 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of 72P/Denning-Fujikawa
Map showing Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa in Aries on June, 05 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

72P/Denning-Fujikawa
RA: 02h 38m 22s
Dec: +12° 04’ 36”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa from Earth is currently 210,554,733 kilometers, equivalent to 1.407471 Astronomical Units. Light takes 11 minutes and 42.3350 seconds to travel from Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa and arrive to us.

210,554,733
1.407471
11 minutes and 42.3350 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa 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 72P/Denning-Fujikawa 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 72P/Denning-Fujikawa from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa to Earth happens on Mon Aug 18 2059 at a distance of 0.172872 Astronomical Units, or 25,861,342 kilometers:

Mon Aug 18 2059
25,861,342
0.172872

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

Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa, 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 72P/Denning-Fujikawa as a function of time

Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa at epoch 19 November 2014 00:00 UTC (JD: 2456981.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.81915453
Orbit inclination i 9.16928387°
Perihelion distance q 0.78416121 AU
117,308,847 km
Aphelion distance Q 7.88800726 AU
1,180,029,092 km
Semi-major axis a 4.33608423 AU
648,668,970 km
Orbital period period 9.0293 years
3,297.9570 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2014-Jul-11 15:17:35
2,456,850.1372 JD
Next perihelion transit 2023-Jul-22 14:15
2,460,148.0942 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 337.85804245663°
Longitude of the ascending node node 36.109196457752°
Mean anomaly M 14.3393624146°
Mean motion n 0.10915849°/day

Visualization of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa 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 72P/Denning-Fujikawa
View Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 72P/Denning-Fujikawa in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 May 29 01h 57m 20s +06° 56’ 14” 16.45 Pisces
2023 May 30 02h 02m 29s +07° 36’ 21” 16.35 Pisces
2023 May 31 02h 07m 37s +08° 16’ 10” 16.26 Cetus
2023 Jun 01 02h 12m 47s +08° 55’ 39” 16.17 Cetus
2023 Jun 02 02h 17m 57s +09° 34’ 45” 16.09 Cetus
2023 Jun 03 02h 23m 08s +10° 13’ 27” 16.01 Cetus
2023 Jun 04 02h 28m 18s +10° 51’ 45” 15.94 Aries
2023 Jun 05 02h 33m 29s +11° 29’ 32” 15.87 Aries
2023 Jun 06 02h 38m 40s +12° 06’ 51” 15.82 Aries
2023 Jun 07 02h 43m 53s +12° 43’ 38” 15.76 Aries
2023 Jun 08 02h 49m 05s +13° 19’ 53” 15.72 Aries
2023 Jun 09 02h 54m 16s +13° 55’ 32” 15.68 Aries
2023 Jun 10 02h 59m 29s +14° 30’ 34” 15.65 Aries
2023 Jun 11 03h 04m 41s +15° 04’ 59” 15.62 Aries