Comet 8P/Tuttle
Comet 8P/Tuttle Sky Charts and Coordinates
This is a simplified sky chart, showing where Comet 8P/Tuttle 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
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.
Comet 8P/Tuttle Rise and Set Times
Today's Comet 8P/Tuttle rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]. All times are relative to the Europe/London timezone.
Comet 8P/Tuttle Orbit Diagram
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 8P/Tuttle with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 8P/Tuttle 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 8P/Tuttle in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 8P/Tuttle Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 8P/Tuttle computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 8P/Tuttle in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 Feb 16 | 20h 10m 18s | +16° 47’ 03” | 32.55 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 17 | 20h 10m 50s | +16° 51’ 07” | 32.54 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 18 | 20h 11m 21s | +16° 55’ 17” | 32.53 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 19 | 20h 11m 51s | +16° 59’ 30” | 32.53 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 20 | 20h 12m 20s | +17° 03’ 46” | 32.52 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 21 | 20h 12m 51s | +17° 08’ 07” | 32.51 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 22 | 20h 13m 22s | +17° 12’ 29” | 32.50 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 23 | 20h 13m 50s | +17° 16’ 58” | 32.49 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 24 | 20h 14m 21s | +17° 21’ 29” | 32.49 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 25 | 20h 14m 49s | +17° 26’ 03” | 32.48 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 26 | 20h 15m 20s | +17° 30’ 41” | 32.47 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 27 | 20h 15m 48s | +17° 35’ 22” | 32.46 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Feb 28 | 20h 16m 17s | +17° 40’ 08” | 32.45 | Sagitta |
| 2019 Mar 01 | 20h 16m 45s | +17° 44’ 56” | 32.44 | Sagitta |
Distance of Comet 8P/Tuttle from Earth
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 8P/Tuttle 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 8P/Tuttle is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Light Curve of Comet 8P/Tuttle
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 8P/Tuttle, 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 8P/Tuttle Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 8P/Tuttle at epoch 30 September 2007 00:00 UTC (JD: 2454374.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.81979975 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 54.98318484° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.02711659 AU 153,654,455 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
10.37260755 AU 1,551,720,007 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
5.69986207 AU 852,687,231 km |
| Orbital period | period |
13.6100 years 4,970.4413 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2008-Jan-27 00:36:47 2,454,492.5256 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2021-Sep-05 11:12 2,459,462.9668 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 207.50924597274° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 270.34165200508° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 351.45162452903° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.07242818°/day |
| Closest approach to Earth* | 2048-Dec-28 | |
| Distance of closest approach* | 0.17536714 AU 26,234,550 km |
* NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed for the time interval between 2013-Jan-01 and 2100-Dec-31, with a sampling interval of 1 day.