Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS)
Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) is currently in the constellation of Eridanus. The current Right Ascension of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) is 02h 47m 27s and the Declination is -05° 02’ 12” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]). The current estimated magnitude of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) is 20.15 (JPL).
Summary of key facts about Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) [tip: you can also create a Quick Access page for this data if you access it frequently and would like to have a simpler view]:
- C/2020 S4 is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change].
- It is visible looking in the South-West direction at an altitude of 22° above the horizon.
- Given its current magnitude, C/2020 S4 is visible only through long exposure photography.
- See also C/2020 S4 rise and set times.
- 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 information about Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) available on TheSkyLive:
Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) Position and Finder Charts
Below we provide Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) finder charts showing where the object is right now in the sky with respect to the brightest stars. The first finder chart has a field of view of 50 degrees, while the second one has a field of view of 10 degrees. Click on each finder chart to access a full screen interactive Online Planetarium.
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
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Field of view: 10x6 degrees
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Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) from Earth is currently 1,050,913,669 kilometers, equivalent to 7.024924 Astronomical Units. Light takes 58 minutes and 25.4707 seconds to travel from Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) 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 C/2020 S4 from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest approach of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) to Earth
Between January 2013 and December 2100, the closest approach of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) to Earth happens on Mon Feb 6 2023 at a distance of 2.393750 Astronomical Units, or 358,099,945 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) brightness
The current visual magnitude of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) is 20.15.
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 behavior 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.
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS), 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 C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) rise and set times
Location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]
Latitude: 51° 28’ 47” N
Longitude: 0° 00’ 00” E
Timezone: Europe/London
Today's Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change] are the following (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
The rise and set times are defined as the time at which the upper limb of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) touches the horizon, considering the effect of the atmospheric refraction. As the atmospheric conditions cannot be modeled precisely the times reported here should be considered correct with an approximation of few minutes.
Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) at epoch 03 October 2020 00:00 UTC (JD: 2459126.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.99961850 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 20.57523798° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 3.36636540 AU 503,601,097 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
17,644.88358013 AU 2,639,637,017,631 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
8,824.12497277 AU 1,320,070,309,364 km |
| Orbital period | period |
828,925.8400 years 302,765,162.7447 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2023-Feb-09 15:24:20 2,459,985.1419 JD |
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 21.095497819794° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 117.70970746872° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 359.99897904011° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.00000119°/day |
Visualization of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) 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 C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) 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 S4 (PANSTARRS) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 Jan 12 | 02h 47m 35s | -05° 27’ 08” | 20.16 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 13 | 02h 47m 32s | -05° 24’ 10” | 20.16 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 14 | 02h 47m 30s | -05° 21’ 07” | 20.16 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 15 | 02h 47m 29s | -05° 18’ 02” | 20.16 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 16 | 02h 47m 27s | -05° 14’ 53” | 20.15 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 17 | 02h 47m 26s | -05° 11’ 43” | 20.15 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 18 | 02h 47m 26s | -05° 08’ 29” | 20.15 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 19 | 02h 47m 26s | -05° 05’ 12” | 20.15 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 20 | 02h 47m 27s | -05° 01’ 53” | 20.15 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 21 | 02h 47m 30s | -04° 58’ 31” | 20.15 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 22 | 02h 47m 31s | -04° 55’ 05” | 20.15 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 23 | 02h 47m 34s | -04° 51’ 38” | 20.14 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 24 | 02h 47m 36s | -04° 48’ 07” | 20.14 | Eridanus |
| 2021 Jan 25 | 02h 47m 40s | -04° 44’ 35” | 20.14 | Eridanus |