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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 4:48  
clear_day Transit: 12:56  
SunsetSet: 21:05 south
wb_twilight Astronomical TwilightWhat's Visible Now
Comets » 

Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE)

Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) is currently in the constellation of Cygnus.

The current Right Ascension of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) is 19h 58m 46s and the Declination is +50° 05’ 29” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) is 23.91 (JPL).

19h 58m 46s
+50° 05’ 29”
Cygnus
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
23.91

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/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Today Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) is circumpolar and transits at 03:17 UTC reaching a maximum altitude of 88.6°.
  • C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Right now it is placed in the East-North-East direction at an altitude of 44° above the horizon.
  • Given its current magnitude, C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) 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.

Available Resources

Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) 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.

Finder chart of C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) in Cygnus on June,02 2023
Map showing Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) in Cygnus on June, 02 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE)
Map showing Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) in Cygnus on June, 02 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE)
RA: 19h 58m 46s
Dec: +50° 05’ 29”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE)
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) from Earth is currently 1,039,261,002 kilometers, equivalent to 6.947031 Astronomical Units. Light takes 57 minutes and 46.6016 seconds to travel from Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) and arrive to us.

1,039,261,002
6.947031
57 minutes and 46.6016 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) 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/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) 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/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) to Earth happens on Mon Apr 5 2021 at a distance of 2.136624 Astronomical Units, or 319,634,385 kilometers:

Mon Apr 5 2021
319,634,385
2.136624

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

Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE), 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/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) as a function of time

Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) at epoch 14 April 2021 00:00 UTC (JD: 2459319.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.99972271
Orbit inclination i 78.14919810°
Perihelion distance q 1.96768925 AU
294,362,123 km
Aphelion distance Q 14,190.50172377 AU
2,122,868,846,298 km
Semi-major axis a 7,096.23470651 AU
1,061,581,604,211 km
Orbital period period 597,792.0831 years
218,343,558.3645 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2021-Jul-15 07:52:29
2,459,410.8281 JD
Next perihelion transit 4077-Aug-11 02:24
220,802,969.1926 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 356.06544047605°
Longitude of the ascending node node 154.51874574499°
Mean anomaly M 359.99984942023°
Mean motion n 0.00000165°/day

Visualization of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) 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/2021 A7 (NEOWISE)
View Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet C/2021 A7 (NEOWISE) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 May 26 20h 02m 03s +49° 36’ 43” 23.87 Cygnus
2023 May 27 20h 01m 41s +49° 40’ 41” 23.87 Cygnus
2023 May 28 20h 01m 18s +49° 44’ 35” 23.88 Cygnus
2023 May 29 20h 00m 54s +49° 48’ 21” 23.88 Cygnus
2023 May 30 20h 00m 29s +49° 52’ 02” 23.89 Cygnus
2023 May 31 20h 00m 03s +49° 55’ 37” 23.89 Cygnus
2023 Jun 01 19h 59m 38s +49° 59’ 07” 23.90 Cygnus
2023 Jun 02 19h 59m 11s +50° 02’ 29” 23.90 Cygnus
2023 Jun 03 19h 58m 44s +50° 05’ 44” 23.91 Cygnus
2023 Jun 04 19h 58m 14s +50° 08’ 54” 23.91 Cygnus
2023 Jun 05 19h 57m 47s +50° 11’ 57” 23.92 Cygnus
2023 Jun 06 19h 57m 16s +50° 14’ 54” 23.92 Cygnus
2023 Jun 07 19h 56m 47s +50° 17’ 44” 23.93 Cygnus
2023 Jun 08 19h 56m 16s +50° 20’ 26” 23.93 Cygnus