Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS)
Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) is currently in the constellation of Draco. The current Right Ascension of Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) is 17h 41m 15s and the Declination is +51° 20’ 10” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]). The current estimated magnitude of Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) is 17.98 (JPL).
Summary of key facts about Comet C/2020 U5 (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 U5 (PANSTARRS) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change].
- It is visible looking in the East-North-East direction at an altitude of 55° above the horizon.
- Given its current magnitude, C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) is visible only through long exposure photography.
- See also C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) 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 U5 (PANSTARRS) available on TheSkyLive:
Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) Position and Finder Charts
Below we provide Comet C/2020 U5 (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
View fullscreen
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen
Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) from Earth is currently 597,348,329 kilometers, equivalent to 3.993027 Astronomical Units. Light takes 33 minutes and 12.5395 seconds to travel from Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet C/2020 U5 (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 U5 (PANSTARRS) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest approach of Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) to Earth
Between January 2013 and December 2100, the closest approach of Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) to Earth happens on Tue Dec 28 2021 at a distance of 3.393931 Astronomical Units, or 507,724,831 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) brightness
The current visual magnitude of Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) is 17.98.
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 U5 (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 U5 (PANSTARRS) rise and set times
Location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]
Latitude: 51° 28’ 47” N
Longitude: 0° 00’ 00” E
Timezone: Europe/London
Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) is circumpolar and transits at 16:43 UTC (altitude: 89.9°)
The rise and set times are defined as the time at which the upper limb of Comet C/2020 U5 (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 U5 (PANSTARRS) Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) at epoch 25 October 2021 00:00 UTC (JD: 2459513.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.99946163 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 97.27278584° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 3.75598226 AU 561,886,949 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
13,949.39241331 AU 2,086,799,406,775 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
6,976.57419778 AU 1,043,680,646,862 km |
| Orbital period | period |
582,735.5704 years 212,844,167.0960 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2022-Apr-27 20:39:18 2,459,697.3606 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2330-Nov-05 11:24 215,303,864.4567 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 75.412851570927° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 107.33986281126° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 359.99968902211° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.00000169°/day |
Visualization of Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet C/2020 U5 (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 U5 (PANSTARRS) in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet C/2020 U5 (PANSTARRS) 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet C/2020 U5 (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 U5 (PANSTARRS) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 Sep 28 | 17h 34m 53s | +54° 17’ 26” | 17.94 | Draco |
| 2022 Sep 29 | 17h 35m 41s | +53° 53’ 34” | 17.94 | Draco |
| 2022 Sep 30 | 17h 36m 30s | +53° 29’ 48” | 17.95 | Draco |
| 2022 Oct 01 | 17h 37m 20s | +53° 06’ 08” | 17.95 | Draco |
| 2022 Oct 02 | 17h 38m 12s | +52° 42’ 36” | 17.96 | Draco |
| 2022 Oct 03 | 17h 39m 02s | +52° 19’ 09” | 17.96 | Draco |
| 2022 Oct 04 | 17h 39m 55s | +51° 55’ 49” | 17.97 | Draco |
| 2022 Oct 05 | 17h 40m 46s | +51° 32’ 35” | 17.97 | Draco |
| 2022 Oct 06 | 17h 41m 39s | +51° 09’ 30” | 17.98 | Draco |
| 2022 Oct 07 | 17h 42m 33s | +50° 46’ 32” | 17.98 | Draco |
| 2022 Oct 08 | 17h 43m 27s | +50° 23’ 42” | 17.99 | Hercules |
| 2022 Oct 09 | 17h 44m 21s | +50° 01’ 00” | 17.99 | Hercules |
| 2022 Oct 10 | 17h 45m 15s | +49° 38’ 25” | 18.00 | Hercules |
| 2022 Oct 11 | 17h 46m 09s | +49° 15’ 59” | 18.00 | Hercules |