Comet 81P/Wild 2
Comet 81P/Wild 2 Sky Charts and Coordinates
This is a simplified sky chart, showing where Comet 81P/Wild 2 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
Comet 81P/Wild 2 Rise and Set Times
Today's Comet 81P/Wild 2 rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]. All times are relative to the local timezone Europe/London.
Comet 81P/Wild 2 Orbit Diagram
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 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 | MagnitudeMag | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Apr 12 | 21.41 | 22h 24m 56s | -10° 21’ 47” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 13 | 21.41 | 22h 25m 41s | -10° 17’ 48” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 14 | 21.41 | 22h 26m 25s | -10° 13’ 54” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 15 | 21.42 | 22h 27m 07s | -10° 10’ 00” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 16 | 21.42 | 22h 27m 51s | -10° 06’ 10” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 17 | 21.42 | 22h 28m 33s | -10° 02’ 21” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 18 | 21.42 | 22h 29m 16s | -09° 58’ 35” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 19 | 21.42 | 22h 29m 57s | -09° 54’ 51” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 20 | 21.42 | 22h 30m 38s | -09° 51’ 08” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 21 | 21.42 | 22h 31m 19s | -09° 47’ 30” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 22 | 21.42 | 22h 31m 59s | -09° 43’ 54” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 23 | 21.42 | 22h 32m 39s | -09° 40’ 19” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 24 | 21.42 | 22h 33m 19s | -09° 36’ 48” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Apr 25 | 21.42 | 22h 33m 57s | -09° 33’ 20” | Aquarius |
Distance of Comet 81P/Wild 2 from Earth
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 81P/Wild 2 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 81P/Wild 2 is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Light Curve of Comet 81P/Wild 2
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 Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 81P/Wild 2 at epoch 03 September 2011 00:00 UTC (JD: 2455808.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.53707098 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 3.23724601° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.59796942 AU 239,052,824 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
5.30576460 AU 793,731,088 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
3.45186701 AU 516,391,956 km |
| Orbital period | period |
6.4100 years 2,342.4995 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2010-Feb-22 13:29:10 2,455,250.0619 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2016-Jul-23 01:28 2,457,592.5614 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 41.756328492562° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 136.09768418711° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 85.821876931274° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.15368200°/day |
| Closest approach to Earth* | 2042-Apr-05 | |
| Distance of closest approach* | 0.65384692 AU 97,814,107 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.