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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 6:54  
clear_day Transit: 12:49  
SunsetSet: 18:43 south
sunny DaytimeWhat's Visible Now
Comets » 

Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE)

Altitude: 4.2°   Azimuth: 116.2°   Direction: East-South-East

Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) is currently in the constellation of Virgo. The current Right Ascension of Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) is 13h 33m 26s and the Declination is -12° 29’ 25” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) is 25.19 (JPL).

13h 33m 26s
-12° 29’ 25”
Virgo
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
25.19

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/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 102.5°
Max altitude: 26.0°
Azimuth: 257.5°
  • C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Right now it is placed in the East-South-East direction at an altitude of 4° above the horizon.
  • Given its current magnitude, C/2022 P1 (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/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet C/2022 P1 (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/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) in Virgo on September,28 2023
Map showing Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) in Virgo on September, 28 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE)
Map showing Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) in Virgo on September, 28 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE)
RA: 13h 33m 26s
Dec: -12° 29’ 25”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE)
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) from Earth is currently 707,718,755 kilometers, equivalent to 4.730808 Astronomical Units. Light takes 39 minutes and 20.6957 seconds to travel from Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) and arrive to us.

707,718,755
4.730808
39 minutes and 20.6957 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet C/2022 P1 (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/2022 P1 (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/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) to Earth happens on Sun Sep 25 2022 at a distance of 0.849794 Astronomical Units, or 127,127,427 kilometers:

Sun Sep 25 2022
127,127,427
0.849794

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

Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet C/2022 P1 (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/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) as a function of time

Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) at epoch 15 September 2022 00:00 UTC (JD: 2459838.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.91346503
Orbit inclination i 154.60615614°
Perihelion distance q 1.59515112 AU
238,631,211 km
Aphelion distance Q 35.27205236 AU
5,276,623,939 km
Semi-major axis a 18.43360174 AU
2,757,627,575 km
Orbital period period 79.1450 years
28,907.7125 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2022-Nov-28 11:29:10
2,459,911.9786 JD
Next perihelion transit 2102-Jan-21 04:35
2,488,819.6911 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 249.93668217767°
Longitude of the ascending node node 205.08080516608°
Mean anomaly M 359.08493989103°
Mean motion n 0.01245342°/day

Visualization of Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet C/2022 P1 (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/2022 P1 (NEOWISE)
View Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet C/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet C/2022 P1 (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/2022 P1 (NEOWISE) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 Sep 21 13h 29m 39s -12° 28’ 49” 24.98 Virgo
2023 Sep 22 13h 30m 10s -12° 28’ 46” 25.01 Virgo
2023 Sep 23 13h 30m 39s -12° 28’ 46” 25.04 Virgo
2023 Sep 24 13h 31m 10s -12° 28’ 49” 25.07 Virgo
2023 Sep 25 13h 31m 41s -12° 28’ 53” 25.10 Virgo
2023 Sep 26 13h 32m 12s -12° 28’ 59” 25.13 Virgo
2023 Sep 27 13h 32m 44s -12° 29’ 08” 25.15 Virgo
2023 Sep 28 13h 33m 15s -12° 29’ 20” 25.18 Virgo
2023 Sep 29 13h 33m 46s -12° 29’ 31” 25.21 Virgo
2023 Sep 30 13h 34m 17s -12° 29’ 47” 25.24 Virgo
2023 Oct 01 13h 34m 48s -12° 30’ 02” 25.27 Virgo
2023 Oct 02 13h 35m 20s -12° 30’ 20” 25.29 Virgo
2023 Oct 03 13h 35m 51s -12° 30’ 39” 25.32 Virgo
2023 Oct 04 13h 36m 23s -12° 31’ 00” 25.35 Virgo