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Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS)

Above the horizon.  Rise: 10:30 | Tran: 17:45 | Set: 1:03
Alt: 26.69°   Az: 100.17°   Direction: East

Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) is in the constellation of Gemini, at a distance of 874,944,667.0 kilometers from Earth. The current Right Ascension is 06h 33m 26s and the Declination is +14° 39’ 48” (apparent coordinates). The latest observed magnitude of Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) is 16.0 (data provided by COBS).

Finder Charts

Map showing Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) in Gemini on April, 18 2025. Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View interactive star map
Sky map showing Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) in Gemini on April, 18 2025. Field of view: 15x9 degrees. View in interactive sky chart

High precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS)
RA: 06h 32m 00s
Dec: +14° 41’ 00”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS). Field of view: 60x40 arcmins. View in deep sky object tracker

Also check out Where is Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Celestial Coordinates

Apparent

06h 33m 26s
+14° 39’ 48”
19h 38m 30s
02h 11m 56s

J2000

06h 32m 00s
+14° 41’ 00”

Additional Information

Gemini
16.0
1.7'
n/a
2025-04-16
15.61

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.

Rise and Set Times

Today's rise, transit and set times of Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) from Greenwich, UK (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 75.3°
Max altitude: 53.2°
Azimuth: 284.6°
  • C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) is above the horizon from Greenwich, UK.
  • Right now it is placed in the East direction at an altitude of 26.69° above the horizon.
  • Given its current magnitude, C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) 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.

Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) from Earth is currently 874,944,667.0 kilometers, equivalent to 5.8486438537 Astronomical Units. Light takes 48m 38.501s to travel from Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) and arrive to us.

874,944,667.0
5.8486438537
48m 38.501s

The following chart shows the distance of Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) 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 QE78 (ATLAS) 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 QE78 (ATLAS) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach

Between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2099, the closest approach of Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) to Earth happens on Wed Jan 28 2026 at a distance of 4.602841 Astronomical Units, or 688,575,154 kilometers:

Wed Jan 28 2026
688,575,154
4.602841

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

Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS), 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 QE78 (ATLAS) as a function of time

Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) at epoch 21 April 2024 00:00 UTC (JD: 2460422.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 1.00401456
Orbit inclination i 36.55151227°
Perihelion distance q 5.47968589 AU
819,749,343 km
Aphelion distance Q n.a.
Semi-major axis a n.a.
Orbital period period n.a.
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2025-Sep-10 05:53:10
2,460,928.7453 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 0.38506385736114°
Longitude of the ascending node node 119.93863481°
Mean anomaly M -0.0098943791873907°
Mean motion n 0.00001954°/day

Orbit Visualization

Orbit Diagram of Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS)
View Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) in the 3D Solar System Simulator

15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Apparent celestial coordinates are provided.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2025 Apr 11 06h 29m 21s +14° 06’ 14” 15.59 Gemini
2025 Apr 12 06h 29m 51s +14° 10’ 51” 15.59 Gemini
2025 Apr 13 06h 30m 23s +14° 15’ 24” 15.59 Gemini
2025 Apr 14 06h 30m 55s +14° 19’ 55” 15.60 Gemini
2025 Apr 15 06h 31m 27s +14° 24’ 24” 15.60 Gemini
2025 Apr 16 06h 32m 00s +14° 28’ 49” 15.61 Gemini
2025 Apr 17 06h 32m 34s +14° 33’ 13” 15.61 Gemini
2025 Apr 18 06h 33m 08s +14° 37’ 34” 15.61 Gemini
2025 Apr 19 06h 33m 43s +14° 41’ 52” 15.62 Gemini
2025 Apr 20 06h 34m 18s +14° 46’ 07” 15.62 Gemini
2025 Apr 21 06h 34m 54s +14° 50’ 21” 15.63 Gemini
2025 Apr 22 06h 35m 30s +14° 54’ 31” 15.63 Gemini
2025 Apr 23 06h 36m 07s +14° 58’ 39” 15.63 Gemini
2025 Apr 24 06h 36m 44s +15° 02’ 44” 15.64 Gemini

Additional Resources