Highlights
- The Sun is in Virgo, the Moon is Waxing Crescent in Virgo
- T CrB: magnitude
10.134 ± 0.042 [2024-10-04 19:13:58 UTC, CCD/V, KMWA/AAVSO] - Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS):
magnitude
1.3 in Virgo - Comet 13P/Olbers:
magnitude
9.3 in Virgo - Comet C/2024 S1 (ATLAS):
magnitude
12.3 in Hydra -
Next NEO approach:
Asteroid (NEO) 2024 SY5,
Oct 5 2024 at 13:59 UTC,1,639,985 km,4.27 lunar distances - Neptune 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 45m 54s | -04° 55’ 57” | 1,918.8” | -26.74 | Virgo | map my_location |
| Moon | 14h 24m 41s | -17° 46’ 03” | 1,771.2” | -6.42 | Virgo | 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 | 12h 59m 31s | -05° 23’ 49” | 4.8” | -1.32 | Virgo | map my_location |
| Venus | 14h 48m 34s | -16° 43’ 24” | 12.5” | -3.92 | Libra | map my_location |
| Mars | 07h 14m 12s | +22° 58’ 34” | 7.7” | 0.36 | Gemini | map my_location |
| Jupiter | 05h 22m 21s | +22° 26’ 11” | 41.8” | -2.49 | Taurus | map my_location |
| Saturn | 23h 04m 44s | -08° 16’ 52” | 18.3” | 0.68 | Aquarius | map my_location |
| Uranus | 03h 38m 14s | +19° 10’ 43” | 3.7” | 5.67 | Taurus | map my_location |
| Neptune | 23h 55m 12s | -01° 57’ 49” | 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.
4.8”
12.5”
7.7”
41.8”
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) | 11h 47m 08s | -04° 55’ 44” | 1.3 | 6.00 | Virgo Vir | map my_location | ||
| 13P/Olbers | 14h 50m 16s | +03° 16’ 47” | 9.3 | 11.02 | Virgo Vir | map my_location | ||
| C/2024 S1 (ATLAS) | 09h 43m 25s | -14° 16’ 04” | 12.3 | 15.02 | Hydra Hya | map my_location | ||
| C/2022 E2 (ATLAS) | 07h 35m 40s | +51° 58’ 02” | 13.2 | 13.44 | Lynx Lyn | map my_location | ||
| C/2023 C2 (ATLAS) | 17h 34m 36s | -36° 33’ 38” | 13.2 | 14.70 | Scorpius Sco | map my_location | ||
| 12P/Pons-Brooks | 13h 58m 04s | -47° 38’ 54” | - | 14.04 | Centaurus Cen | map my_location | ||
| C/2020 V2 (ZTF) | 21h 27m 54s | -69° 45’ 24” | 14.5 | 15.71 | Pavo Pav | map my_location | ||
| C/2021 S3 (PANSTARRS) | 19h 38m 35s | +45° 09’ 13” | 14.8 | 12.82 | Cygnus Cyg | map my_location | ||
| C/2022 N2 (PANSTARRS) | 22h 40m 09s | -05° 10’ 08” | 14.8 | 15.82 | Aquarius Aqr | map my_location | ||
| C/2024 B1 (Lemmon) | 12h 06m 43s | +48° 36’ 59” | 14.9 | 14.90 | Ursa Major UMa | 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 28m 26s | +08° 05’ 38” | 8.15 | Leo | map my_location | ||
| 1 Ceres | 18h 54m 06s | -30° 18’ 33” | 8.93 | Sagittarius | map my_location | ||
| 1036 Ganymed | 21h 43m 48s | +40° 13’ 34” | 8.96 | Cygnus | map my_location | ||
| 7 Iris | 20h 33m 07s | -11° 00’ 08” | 9.27 | Capricornus | map my_location | ||
| 15 Eunomia | 05h 46m 04s | +35° 30’ 02” | 9.32 | Auriga | map my_location | ||
| 20 Massalia | 00h 20m 00s | +02° 34’ 13” | 9.49 | Pisces | map my_location | ||
| 19 Fortuna | 01h 40m 50s | +11° 05’ 08” | 9.73 | Pisces | map my_location | ||
| 2 Pallas | 16h 46m 12s | +08° 53’ 34” | 10.32 | Hercules | map my_location | ||
| 11 Parthenope | 03h 54m 33s | +13° 14’ 26” | 10.56 | Taurus | map my_location | ||
| 10 Hygiea | 01h 53m 27s | +17° 09’ 33” | 10.72 | 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 | |
| Daytime Sextantids | 27 Sep | 10h 05m | +00° | 5 | bright | map | ||
| Draconids | 8 Oct | 17h 30m | +54° | variable | medium | 21P/Giacobini-Zinner | map | |