Comet 81P/Wild 2
Comet 81P/Wild 2 is currently in the constellation of Taurus. The current Right Ascension of Comet 81P/Wild 2 is 05h 05m 17s and the Declination is +21° 00’ 35” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]). The current estimated magnitude of Comet 81P/Wild 2 is 17.14 (JPL).
Summary of key facts about Comet 81P/Wild 2 [tip: you can also create a Quick Access page for this data if you access it frequently and would like to have a simpler view]:
- 81P/Wild 2 is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change].
- It is visible looking in the South-West direction at an altitude of 51° above the horizon.
- Given its current magnitude, 81P/Wild 2 is visible only through long exposure photography.
- See also 81P/Wild 2 rise and set times.
- 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.
Additional information about Comet 81P/Wild 2 available on TheSkyLive:
Comet 81P/Wild 2 Position and Finder Charts
Below we provide Comet 81P/Wild 2 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.
Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 81P/Wild 2 is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet 81P/Wild 2?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 81P/Wild 2 in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet 81P/Wild 2 Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet 81P/Wild 2 from Earth is currently 510,356,277 kilometers, equivalent to 3.411521 Astronomical Units. Light takes 28 minutes and 22.3653 seconds to travel from Comet 81P/Wild 2 and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 81P/Wild 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 81P/Wild 2 from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest approach of Comet 81P/Wild 2 to Earth
Between January 2013 and December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 81P/Wild 2 to Earth happens on Sat Apr 5 2042 at a distance of 0.654987 Astronomical Units, or 97,984,675 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet 81P/Wild 2 brightness
The current visual magnitude of Comet 81P/Wild 2 is 17.14.
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 behavior 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 81P/Wild 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 81P/Wild 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 81P/Wild 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 81P/Wild 2 touches the horizon, considering the effect of the atmospheric refraction. As the atmospheric conditions cannot be modeled precisely the times reported here should be considered correct with an approximation of few minutes.
Comet 81P/Wild 2 Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 81P/Wild 2 at epoch 23 June 2012 00:00 UTC (JD: 2456102.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.53711239 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 3.23764964° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.59738249 AU 238,965,020 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
5.30443319 AU 793,531,912 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
3.45090784 AU 516,248,466 km |
| Orbital period | period |
6.4107 years 2,341.5232 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2010-Feb-22 10:34:36 2,455,249.9407 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2016-Jul-21 23:08 2,457,591.4639 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 41.723850277385° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 136.09884006514° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 131.07764372917° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.15374607°/day |
Visualization of Comet 81P/Wild 2 Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 81P/Wild 2 with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 81P/Wild 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 81P/Wild 2 in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 81P/Wild 2 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 81P/Wild 2 computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 81P/Wild 2 in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 May 09 | 04h 51m 38s | +20° 35’ 29” | 17.26 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 10 | 04h 53m 22s | +20° 38’ 58” | 17.24 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 11 | 04h 55m 09s | +20° 42’ 24” | 17.23 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 12 | 04h 56m 56s | +20° 45’ 47” | 17.21 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 13 | 04h 58m 41s | +20° 49’ 05” | 17.20 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 14 | 05h 00m 29s | +20° 52’ 20” | 17.18 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 15 | 05h 02m 17s | +20° 55’ 32” | 17.16 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 16 | 05h 04m 06s | +20° 58’ 38” | 17.15 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 17 | 05h 05m 56s | +21° 01’ 41” | 17.13 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 18 | 05h 07m 45s | +21° 04’ 39” | 17.12 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 19 | 05h 09m 36s | +21° 07’ 32” | 17.10 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 20 | 05h 11m 26s | +21° 10’ 23” | 17.09 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 21 | 05h 13m 18s | +21° 13’ 09” | 17.07 | Taurus |
| 2022 May 22 | 05h 15m 10s | +21° 15’ 48” | 17.05 | Taurus |