Comet 78P/Gehrels 2
Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 Position
Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 is currently in the constellation of Cancer. The current Right Ascension is 09h 00m 08s and the Declination is +11° 02’ 42”.
Simplified sky chart showing where Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 is right now in the sky with respect to the brightest stars and constellations (see fuillscreen Online Planetarium)
Field of view: 60x30 degrees
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Hihgher precision deep sky finder chart showing where Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 is right now (view fullscreen)
Also check out Where is Comet 78P/Gehrels 2?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 Distance
The distance of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 from Earth is currently 408,513,676 kilometers, equivalent to 2.730745 Astronomical Units. Light takes 22 minutes and 42.6549 seconds to travel from Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 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.
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 78P/Gehrels 2 from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest approach of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 to Earth
Between January 2013 and December 2100 the closest approach of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 to Earth happens on Thu Dec 31 2026 at a distance of 1.56053057 Astronomical Units, or 233,452,051 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 brightness
The current visual magnitude of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 is 16.64.
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.
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2, 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 78P/Gehrels 2 rise and set times
Location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]
Latitude: 51° 28’ 47” N
Longitude: 0° 00’ 00” E
Timezone: Europe/London
Today's Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change] are the following (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
The rise and set times are defined as the time at which the upper limb of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 touches the horizon, consideting the effect of the atmospheric refraction. As the atmoshpere conditions cannot be modeled precisely the times reported here should be considered correct with an approximation of few minutes.
Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 at epoch 19 October 2013 00:00 UTC (JD: 2456585.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.46213279 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 6.25480342° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 2.00918934 AU 300,570,447 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
5.46175997 AU 817,067,663 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
3.73547465 AU 558,819,055 km |
| Orbital period | period |
7.2200 years 2,637.0424 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2012-Jan-12 14:49:57 2,455,939.1180 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2019-Apr-02 15:51 2,458,576.1605 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 192.74668876326° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 210.55732916182° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 88.241853662213° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.13651657°/day |
Visualization of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 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 78P/Gehrels 2 in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 78P/Gehrels 2 in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 Oct 09 | 08h 50m 49s | +11° 55’ 20” | 16.60 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 10 | 08h 52m 09s | +11° 48’ 02” | 16.61 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 11 | 08h 53m 29s | +11° 40’ 45” | 16.61 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 12 | 08h 54m 47s | +11° 33’ 28” | 16.62 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 13 | 08h 56m 03s | +11° 26’ 12” | 16.62 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 14 | 08h 57m 20s | +11° 18’ 56” | 16.63 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 15 | 08h 58m 36s | +11° 11’ 40” | 16.63 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 16 | 08h 59m 51s | +11° 04’ 27” | 16.64 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 17 | 09h 01m 05s | +10° 57’ 15” | 16.64 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 18 | 09h 02m 17s | +10° 50’ 03” | 16.65 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 19 | 09h 03m 29s | +10° 42’ 53” | 16.65 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 20 | 09h 04m 40s | +10° 35’ 45” | 16.66 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 21 | 09h 05m 49s | +10° 28’ 38” | 16.66 | Cancer |
| 2019 Oct 22 | 09h 06m 59s | +10° 21’ 33” | 16.67 | Cancer |