Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1)
Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) is currently in the constellation of Ophiucus. The current Right Ascension of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) is 17h 20m 52s and the Declination is -19° 17’ 05” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]). The current estimated magnitude of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) is 19.55 (JPL).
Summary of key facts about Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) [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/2021 A1 (Leonard) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change].
- It is visible looking in the South-South-West direction at an altitude of 19° above the horizon.
- Given its current magnitude, C/2021 A1 (Leonard) is visible only through long exposure photography.
- See also C/2021 A1 (Leonard) 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 Leonard (C/2021 A1) available on TheSkyLive:
Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) Position and Finder Charts
Below we provide Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) 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
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Field of view: 10x6 degrees
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Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) from Earth is currently 882,269,198 kilometers, equivalent to 5.897605 Astronomical Units. Light takes 49 minutes and 2.9333 seconds to travel from Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) 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/2021 A1 (Leonard) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest approach of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) to Earth
Between January 2013 and December 2100, the closest approach of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) to Earth happens on Mon Dec 13 2021 at a distance of 0.233994 Astronomical Units, or 35,005,004 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) brightness
The current visual magnitude of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) is 19.55.
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 Leonard (C/2021 A1), 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 Leonard (C/2021 A1) rise and set times
Location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]
Latitude: 51° 28’ 47” N
Longitude: 0° 00’ 00” E
Timezone: Europe/London
Today's Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change] are the following (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
The rise and set times are defined as the time at which the upper limb of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) 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 Leonard (C/2021 A1) Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) at epoch 10 July 2021 00:00 UTC (JD: 2459406.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 1.00010048 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 132.68581289° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 0.61523015 AU 92,037,121 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q | n.a. |
| Semi-major axis | a | n.a. |
| Orbital period | period | n.a. |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2022-Jan-03 07:01:27 2,459,582.7927 JD |
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 225.08771460795° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 255.88910274447° |
| Mean anomaly | M | -0.00036264283066415° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.00000206°/day |
Visualization of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) 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 Leonard (C/2021 A1) in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 Jan 30 | 17h 18m 42s | -19° 30’ 20” | 19.54 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Jan 31 | 17h 19m 02s | -19° 28’ 36” | 19.54 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 01 | 17h 19m 21s | -19° 26’ 52” | 19.54 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 02 | 17h 19m 40s | -19° 25’ 05” | 19.55 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 03 | 17h 19m 56s | -19° 23’ 17” | 19.55 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 04 | 17h 20m 13s | -19° 21’ 28” | 19.55 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 05 | 17h 20m 30s | -19° 19’ 36” | 19.55 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 06 | 17h 20m 47s | -19° 17’ 45” | 19.55 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 07 | 17h 21m 02s | -19° 15’ 52” | 19.56 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 08 | 17h 21m 16s | -19° 13’ 58” | 19.56 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 09 | 17h 21m 30s | -19° 12’ 02” | 19.56 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 10 | 17h 21m 43s | -19° 10’ 05” | 19.56 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 11 | 17h 21m 56s | -19° 08’ 08” | 19.56 | Ophiucus |
| 2023 Feb 12 | 17h 22m 09s | -19° 06’ 08” | 19.56 | Ophiucus |