Highlights
- The Sun is in Virgo, the Moon is Waxing Crescent in Ophiucus
- T CrB: magnitude
10.135 ± 0.003 [2024-10-08 08:56:43 UTC, CCD/CV, IDG/AAVSO] - Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS):
magnitude
-3.3 in Virgo - Comet 13P/Olbers:
magnitude
9.8 in Virgo - Comet C/2024 S1 (ATLAS):
magnitude
12.5 in Hydra -
Next NEO approach:
Asteroid (NEO) 2018 QE,
Oct 9 2024 at 04:03 UTC,668,092 km,1.74 lunar distances - Neptune is close to opposition
- Asteroid 10 Hygiea is close to opposition
- Asteroid 17 Thetis is close to opposition
- Asteroid 19 Fortuna is close to opposition
- Asteroid 20 Massalia is close to opposition
- Asteroid 87 Sylvia is close to opposition
Popular Objects
Popular objects during the last 7 days based on the number of visualizations.
The Solar System
Current positions of the major bodies of the Solar System and the brightest comets.
Sun and Moon
How the Sun and the Moon look like today.
| R.A. | Decl. | Apparent Diameter | MagnitudeMag | ConstellationConst | Charts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun | 12h 59m 44s | -06° 22’ 42” | 1,920.9” | -26.74 | Virgo | map my_location |
| Moon | 17h 35m 35s | -29° 00’ 56” | 1,824.4” | -9.19 | Ophiucus | map |
The Planets
Current essential information about the planets. Click each planet to view full details.
| Planet | R.A. | Decl. | Diameter | MagnitudeMag | ConstellationConst | Charts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | 13h 22m 43s | -08° 11’ 29” | 4.7” | -1.01 | Virgo | map my_location |
| Venus | 15h 06m 48s | -18° 12’ 54” | 12.7” | -3.93 | Libra | map my_location |
| Mars | 07h 22m 23s | +22° 49’ 05” | 7.9” | 0.31 | Gemini | map my_location |
| Jupiter | 05h 22m 28s | +22° 26’ 13” | 42.3” | -2.52 | Taurus | map my_location |
| Saturn | 23h 03m 53s | -08° 21’ 53” | 18.3” | 0.69 | Aquarius | map my_location |
| Uranus | 03h 37m 49s | +19° 09’ 16” | 3.7” | 5.66 | Taurus | map my_location |
| Neptune | 23h 54m 50s | -02° 00’ 10” | 2.3” | 7.69 | Pisces | map my_location |
Jupiter Moons
Position of the Galilean satellites of Jupiter. A dedicated tool is available, with more advanced features.
Saturn Moons & Rings
Inclination of the rings of Saturn and positions of major satellites. A dedicated tool is available, with more advanced features.
Apparent Planet Sizes
Comparison between the apparent size of the planets, measured in seconds of a degree, as they appear today.
4.7”
12.7”
7.9”
42.3”
18.3”
3.7”
2.3”
Credits for the planet images: NASA-APL - NASA.
Brightest Comets
List of the 10 brightest comets (open the full list of 228 comets).
| Comet | R.A. | Decl. | Magnitude (COBS)Mag Obs | Magnitude (JPL)Mag Pred | ConstellationConst | Charts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) | 12h 50m 09s | -03° 19’ 50” | -3.3 | 6.00 | Virgo Vir | map my_location | ||
| 13P/Olbers | 14h 58m 49s | +01° 53’ 42” | 9.8 | 11.21 | Virgo Vir | map my_location | ||
| C/2024 S1 (ATLAS) | 10h 07m 33s | -15° 40’ 05” | 12.5 | 14.32 | Hydra Hya | map my_location | ||
| C/2022 E2 (ATLAS) | 07h 33m 28s | +53° 05’ 37” | 12.7 | 13.40 | Lynx Lyn | map my_location | ||
| 154P/Brewington | 08h 51m 31s | +33° 46’ 12” | 13.7 | 17.53 | Lynx Lyn | map my_location | ||
| 12P/Pons-Brooks | 14h 06m 59s | -47° 38’ 26” | - | 14.19 | Centaurus Cen | map my_location | ||
| C/2021 S3 (PANSTARRS) | 19h 41m 56s | +44° 10’ 36” | 14.4 | 12.91 | Cygnus Cyg | map my_location | ||
| C/2023 C2 (ATLAS) | 17h 41m 31s | -35° 25’ 11” | - | 14.73 | Scorpius Sco | map my_location | ||
| C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) | 14h 15m 38s | -47° 09’ 42” | - | 14.82 | Centaurus Cen | map my_location | ||
| C/2022 L2 (ATLAS) | 09h 56m 03s | -30° 41’ 32” | - | 14.93 | Antlia Ant | map my_location |
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.
Brightest Asteroids
List of the 10 brightest asteroids (open the full list of 78 asteroids and dwarf planets.)
| Asteroid | R.A. | Decl. | MagnitudeMag | ConstellationConst | Charts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Vesta | 11h 35m 13s | +07° 27’ 14” | 8.15 | Leo | map my_location | ||
| 1036 Ganymed | 22h 01m 07s | +36° 36’ 12” | 8.87 | Pegasus | map my_location | ||
| 1 Ceres | 18h 57m 39s | -30° 11’ 57” | 8.98 | Sagittarius | map my_location | ||
| 15 Eunomia | 05h 49m 27s | +35° 36’ 17” | 9.26 | Auriga | map my_location | ||
| 7 Iris | 20h 35m 08s | -11° 01’ 16” | 9.33 | Capricornus | map my_location | ||
| 20 Massalia | 00h 16m 36s | +02° 10’ 49” | 9.58 | Pisces | map my_location | ||
| 19 Fortuna | 01h 37m 51s | +10° 43’ 55” | 9.60 | Pisces | map my_location | ||
| 2 Pallas | 16h 50m 34s | +08° 22’ 25” | 10.34 | Hercules | map my_location | ||
| 11 Parthenope | 03h 53m 34s | +13° 03’ 37” | 10.48 | Taurus | map my_location | ||
| 10 Hygiea | 01h 50m 46s | +16° 56’ 18” | 10.64 | Aries | map my_location |
Active Meteor Showers
List of the currently active meteor showers.
| Name | Peak | Radiant R.A. | Radiant Decl. | ZHR ⓘ | Rating | Parent Object | Charts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orionids | 21 Oct | 06h 17m | +16° | 15 | bright | 1P/Halley | map | |
| Southern Taurids | 10 Oct | 02h 06m | +09° | 5 | bright | Comet Encke | map | |
| Delta Aurigids | 11 Oct | 05h 35m | +44° | 2 | medium | map | ||
| Draconids | 8 Oct | 17h 30m | +54° | variable | medium | 21P/Giacobini-Zinner | map | |