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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
SunriseRise: 5:39  
clear_day Transit: 12:56  
SunsetSet: 20:14
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Comets » 

Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS)

Altitude: -20.0°   Azimuth: 343.0°   Direction: North-North-West

Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) is currently in the constellation of Serpens, at a distance of 151,255,754 kilometers from Earth.

Finder chart of C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) in Serpens on April,27 2024
Map showing Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) in Serpens on April, 27 2024. Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View interactive star map
The current Right Ascension of Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) is 15h 57m 41s and the Declination is +16° 56’ 49” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current estimated magnitude of Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) is 17.01 (JPL) while the latest observed magnitude is 16.5 (COBS).

15h 57m 41s
+16° 56’ 49”
Serpens
16.5
0.3'
0.8'
2024-04-18
17.01

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/2024 C4 (ATLAS) from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 72.8°
Max altitude: 55.0°
Azimuth: 286.8°
  • C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Given its current magnitude, C/2024 C4 (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.

Additional Resources

Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) Position and Finder Charts

Finder chart of C/2024 C4 (ATLAS)
Map showing Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) in Serpens on April, 27 2024
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

C/2024 C4 (ATLAS)
RA: 15h 57m 41s
Dec: +16° 56’ 49”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS)
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) from Earth is currently 151,255,754 kilometers, equivalent to 1.011082 Astronomical Units. Light takes 8 minutes and 24.5349 seconds to travel from Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) and arrive to us.

151,255,754
1.011082
8 minutes and 24.5349 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet C/2024 C4 (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/2024 C4 (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/2024 C4 (ATLAS) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) to Earth

Between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2099, the closest approach of Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) to Earth happens on Fri Apr 12 2024 at a distance of 0.941512 Astronomical Units, or 140,848,192 kilometers:

Fri Apr 12 2024
140,848,192
0.941512

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

Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet C/2024 C4 (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/2024 C4 (ATLAS) as a function of time

Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) at epoch 15 February 2024 00:00 UTC (JD: 2460356.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.96979736
Orbit inclination i 79.18307755°
Perihelion distance q 1.46630867 AU
219,356,656 km
Aphelion distance Q 95.63173096 AU
14,306,303,352 km
Semi-major axis a 48.54901982 AU
7,262,830,004 km
Orbital period period 338.2820 years
123,557.5039 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2024-Jan-29 18:39:33
2,460,339.2775 JD
Next perihelion transit 2362-May-15 06:45
2,583,896.7813 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 321.19101380123°
Longitude of the ascending node node 220.5921236474°
Mean anomaly M 0.050179961852602°
Mean motion n 0.00291362°/day

Visualization of Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) 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/2024 C4 (ATLAS)
View Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet C/2024 C4 (ATLAS) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2024 Apr 20 16h 14m 45s +08° 52’ 44” 16.76 Hercules
2024 Apr 21 16h 12m 33s +10° 01’ 14” 16.79 Hercules
2024 Apr 22 16h 10m 19s +11° 08’ 38” 16.82 Serpens
2024 Apr 23 16h 08m 04s +12° 14’ 49” 16.85 Serpens
2024 Apr 24 16h 05m 48s +13° 19’ 45” 16.89 Serpens
2024 Apr 25 16h 03m 30s +14° 23’ 18” 16.92 Serpens
2024 Apr 26 16h 01m 13s +15° 25’ 27” 16.96 Serpens
2024 Apr 27 15h 58m 54s +16° 26’ 08” 16.99 Serpens
2024 Apr 28 15h 56m 35s +17° 25’ 14” 17.03 Serpens
2024 Apr 29 15h 54m 15s +18° 22’ 46” 17.07 Serpens
2024 Apr 30 15h 51m 56s +19° 18’ 42” 17.11 Serpens
2024 May 01 15h 49m 36s +20° 12’ 56” 17.15 Serpens
2024 May 02 15h 47m 17s +21° 05’ 31” 17.20 Serpens
2024 May 03 15h 44m 57s +21° 56’ 24” 17.24 Serpens