Comet 9P/Tempel
Comet 9P/Tempel is in the constellation of
Taurus,
at a distance of
View interactive star map
Comet 9P/Tempel (also known as comet Tempel 1) was discovered by Ernst Tempel on April 3, 1867. It has an orbital period of 5.6 years and travels on a relatively highly elliptical path around the Sun, with a perihelion distance of 1.5 astronomical units (AU) and an aphelion distance of 4.8 AU. The comet is known for its famous encounter with NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft in 2005, during which a projectile was launched to impact the surface of the comet, creating a crater and ejecting debris. The event provided scientists with valuable data about the composition and structure of comets, as well as their potential as carriers of water and organic molecules.
Celestial Coordinates
Apparent
J2000
Additional Information
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.
Rise and Set Times
Today's rise, transit and set times of Comet 9P/Tempel from Greenwich, UK (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- 9P/Tempel is below the horizon from Greenwich, UK.
- Given its current magnitude, 9P/Tempel 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.
Finder Charts
High precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 9P/Tempel is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet 9P/Tempel?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 9P/Tempel in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet 9P/Tempel from Earth is currently
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 9P/Tempel 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 9P/Tempel from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach
Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 9P/Tempel to Earth happens on Sat Jun 16 2040 at a distance of 0.946206 Astronomical Units, or 141,550,459 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Light Curve
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 9P/Tempel, 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.
Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 9P/Tempel at epoch 04 January 2016 00:00 UTC (JD: 2457392.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.50979998 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 10.47325643° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.54243138 AU 230,744,451 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
4.75063805 AU 710,685,339 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
3.14653472 AU 470,714,895 km |
| Orbital period | period |
5.5816 years 2,038.6713 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2016-Aug-02 13:26:37 2,457,603.0602 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2022-Mar-03 05:33 2,459,641.7315 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 179.18829807753° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 68.764569049953° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 322.81810912754° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.17658560°/day |
Orbit Visualization
View Comet 9P/Tempel in the 3D Solar System Simulator
15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 9P/Tempel computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Apparent celestial coordinates are provided.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 Sep 08 | 04h 50m 44s | +21° 16’ 28” | 22.40 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 09 | 04h 50m 57s | +21° 17’ 23” | 22.40 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 10 | 04h 51m 10s | +21° 18’ 17” | 22.39 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 11 | 04h 51m 21s | +21° 19’ 09” | 22.38 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 12 | 04h 51m 32s | +21° 20’ 01” | 22.38 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 13 | 04h 51m 42s | +21° 20’ 51” | 22.37 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 14 | 04h 51m 51s | +21° 21’ 40” | 22.36 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 15 | 04h 51m 59s | +21° 22’ 28” | 22.36 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 16 | 04h 52m 06s | +21° 23’ 15” | 22.35 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 17 | 04h 52m 12s | +21° 24’ 01” | 22.34 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 18 | 04h 52m 18s | +21° 24’ 44” | 22.34 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 19 | 04h 52m 22s | +21° 25’ 28” | 22.33 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 20 | 04h 52m 26s | +21° 26’ 10” | 22.33 | Taurus |
| 2024 Sep 21 | 04h 52m 29s | +21° 26’ 51” | 22.32 | Taurus |
Additional Resources
- Position and finder charts (see also Where is Comet 9P/Tempel?)
- Distance from Earth (see also How far is Comet 9P/Tempel from Earth?)
- When does Comet 9P/Tempel rise and set?
- Brightness (see also How bright is Comet 9P/Tempel?)
- Orbital elements. Detailed information about Comet 9P/Tempel orbital parameters.
- Interactive orbit visualization. 3d visualization showing the orbit of Comet 9P/Tempel with respect to the major Solar System objects.
- 15 days ephemerides. Table showing celestial coordinates and magnitude of Comet 9P/Tempel for the past and next 7 days.
- Interactive sky chart. An online planetarium application that shows where to locate Comet 9P/Tempel in the sky from your location.
- Live position tracker. A high precision sky chart that uses real deep sky imagery to help locate Comet 9P/Tempel with your telescope or on your astrophotographies.