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🌎  Observing from: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]
🌅 Sunrise: 6:34  ☀️ Transit: 13:02  🌅 Sunset: 19:31

Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1)

Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) is currently in the constellation of Octans. The current Right Ascension of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) is 23h 01m 19s and the Declination is -83° 44’ 56” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]). The current estimated magnitude of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) is 19.86 (JPL).

23h 01m 19s
-83° 44’ 56”
Octans
19.86

Today's rise, transit and set times of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change] (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Today Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) is not visible from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]

  • C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change].
  • Given its current magnitude, C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) 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 Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) 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.

Map showing Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) in Octans on April, 02 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Map showing Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) in Octans on April, 02 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen
 = visible to the naked eye
 = binocular, brighter than 10th magnitude
= current altitude ≥ 30°   = current altitude < 30°   = below the horizon
Location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp)
RA: 23h 01m 19s
Dec: -83° 44’ 56”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1)
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) from Earth is currently 7,043,982,822 kilometers, equivalent to 47.086117 Astronomical Units. Light takes 6 hours, 31 minutes and 36.1976 seconds to travel from Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) and arrive to us.

7,043,982,822
47.086117
6 hours, 31 minutes and 36.1976 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) 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 Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) 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/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) to Earth happens on Mon May 27 2013 at a distance of 34.005886 Astronomical Units, or 5,087,208,201 kilometers:

Mon May 27 2013
5,087,208,201
34.005886

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

Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) Brightness

The current visual magnitude of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) is 19.86.

19.86
-
-

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 Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1), 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 Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) as a function of time

Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) at epoch 14 September 2022 00:00 UTC (JD: 2459837.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.99498100
Orbit inclination i 89.28759425°
Perihelion distance q 0.89053766 AU
133,222,539 km
Aphelion distance Q 353.97623016 AU
52,954,090,417 km
Semi-major axis a 177.43338391 AU
26,543,656,478 km
Orbital period period 2,363.5305 years
863,279.5035 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 1997-Mar-29 15:14:15
2,450,537.1349 JD
Next perihelion transit 4360-Oct-27 03:19
3,313,816.6384 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 130.41466706592°
Longitude of the ascending node node 282.73342139616°
Mean anomaly M 3.8783863394232°
Mean motion n 0.00041701°/day

Visualization of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) 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 Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1)
View Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet Hale-Bopp (C/1995 O1) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 Mar 26 22h 56m 43s -83° 42’ 03” 19.86 Octans
2023 Mar 27 22h 57m 20s -83° 42’ 24” 19.86 Octans
2023 Mar 28 22h 57m 59s -83° 42’ 45” 19.86 Octans
2023 Mar 29 22h 58m 36s -83° 43’ 06” 19.86 Octans
2023 Mar 30 22h 59m 13s -83° 43’ 31” 19.86 Octans
2023 Mar 31 22h 59m 52s -83° 43’ 54” 19.86 Octans
2023 Apr 01 23h 00m 29s -83° 44’ 20” 19.86 Octans
2023 Apr 02 23h 01m 05s -83° 44’ 45” 19.86 Octans
2023 Apr 03 23h 01m 42s -83° 45’ 14” 19.86 Octans
2023 Apr 04 23h 02m 18s -83° 45’ 42” 19.86 Octans
2023 Apr 05 23h 02m 54s -83° 46’ 10” 19.86 Octans
2023 Apr 06 23h 03m 30s -83° 46’ 41” 19.86 Octans
2023 Apr 07 23h 04m 06s -83° 47’ 12” 19.86 Octans
2023 Apr 08 23h 04m 41s -83° 47’ 44” 19.86 Octans