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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
SunriseRise: 5:44  
clear_day Transit: 12:03  
SunsetSet: 18:24
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Comets » 

Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral)

Altitude: 53.0°   Azimuth: 302.4°   Direction: West-North-West

Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) is currently in the constellation of Cepheus, at a distance of 1,317,202,693 kilometers from Earth.

Finder chart of C/2020 O2 (Amaral) in Cepheus on March,28 2024
Map showing Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) in Cepheus on March, 28 2024. Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View interactive star map
The current Right Ascension of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) is 21h 06m 47s and the Declination is +55° 38’ 23” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) is 20.20 (JPL).

21h 06m 47s
+55° 38’ 23”
Cepheus
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
20.20

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.

Today's rise, transit and set times of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Today Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) is circumpolar and transits at 08:41 UTC reaching a maximum altitude of 85.8°.
  • C/2020 O2 (Amaral) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Right now it is placed in the West-North-West direction at an altitude of 53° above the horizon.
  • Given its current magnitude, C/2020 O2 (Amaral) 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.

Additional Resources

Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) Position and Finder Charts

Finder chart of C/2020 O2 (Amaral)
Map showing Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) in Cepheus on March, 28 2024
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

C/2020 O2 (Amaral)
RA: 21h 06m 47s
Dec: +55° 38’ 23”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral)
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) from Earth is currently 1,317,202,693 kilometers, equivalent to 8.804956 Astronomical Units. Light takes 1 hours, 13 minutes and 13.7152 seconds to travel from Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) and arrive to us.

1,317,202,693
8.804956
1 hours, 13 minutes and 13.7152 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) 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.

Chart of the distance of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) from Earth in Astronomical Units (au)

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 C/2020 O2 (Amaral) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) to Earth happens on Fri Jun 11 2021 at a distance of 3.887255 Astronomical Units, or 581,525,089 kilometers:

Fri Jun 11 2021
581,525,089
3.887255

NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.

Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral), 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.

Chart of the magnitude of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) as a function of time

Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) at epoch 12 February 2022 00:00 UTC (JD: 2459623.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 1.00232787
Orbit inclination i 71.75062745°
Perihelion distance q 4.86223436 AU
727,379,909 km
Aphelion distance Q n.a.
Semi-major axis a n.a.
Orbital period period n.a.
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2021-Aug-28 14:37:15
2,459,455.1092 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 10.308627491034°
Longitude of the ascending node node 256.7571398407°
Mean anomaly M 0.0017386233559821°
Mean motion n 0.00001032°/day

Visualization of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) 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!

Orbit Diagram of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral)
View Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet C/2020 O2 (Amaral) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2024 Mar 21 21h 01m 31s +54° 46’ 27” 20.16 Cygnus
2024 Mar 22 21h 02m 15s +54° 53’ 12” 20.17 Cygnus
2024 Mar 23 21h 02m 57s +55° 00’ 01” 20.17 Cygnus
2024 Mar 24 21h 03m 39s +55° 06’ 51” 20.18 Cygnus
2024 Mar 25 21h 04m 22s +55° 13’ 44” 20.18 Cygnus
2024 Mar 26 21h 05m 03s +55° 20’ 39” 20.18 Cepheus
2024 Mar 27 21h 05m 44s +55° 27’ 37” 20.19 Cepheus
2024 Mar 28 21h 06m 25s +55° 34’ 36” 20.19 Cepheus
2024 Mar 29 21h 07m 05s +55° 41’ 39” 20.20 Cepheus
2024 Mar 30 21h 07m 45s +55° 48’ 42” 20.20 Cepheus
2024 Mar 31 21h 08m 26s +55° 55’ 50” 20.20 Cepheus
2024 Apr 01 21h 09m 05s +56° 02’ 57” 20.21 Cepheus
2024 Apr 02 21h 09m 43s +56° 10’ 08” 20.21 Cepheus
2024 Apr 03 21h 10m 22s +56° 17’ 21” 20.21 Cepheus