Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS)
Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) is currently in the constellation of Cetus. The current Right Ascension of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) is 02h 42m 43s and the Declination is -05° 37’ 31” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]). The current estimated magnitude of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) is 26.85 (JPL).
Summary of key facts about Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) [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]:
- P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change].
- Given its current magnitude, P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) is visible only through long exposure photography.
- See also P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) 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 P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) available on TheSkyLive:
Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) Position and Finder Charts
Below we provide Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) 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 P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.


Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
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Also check out Where is Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) from Earth is currently 259,263,519 kilometers, equivalent to 1.733070 Astronomical Units. Light takes 14 minutes and 24.8100 seconds to travel from Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) 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 P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest approach of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) to Earth
Between January 2013 and December 2100, the closest approach of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) to Earth happens on Wed Mar 23 2016 at a distance of 0.023839 Astronomical Units, or 3,566,261 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) brightness
The current visual magnitude of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) is 26.85.
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 P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS), 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 P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) 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 P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) 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 P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) 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 P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) at epoch 18 October 2016 00:00 UTC (JD: 2457680.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
Element | Symbol | Value |
---|---|---|
Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.66617928 |
Orbit inclination | i | 18.91808899° |
Perihelion distance | q | 1.00866495 AU 150,894,129 km |
Aphelion distance | Q |
5.03448876 AU 753,148,799 km |
Semi-major axis | a |
3.02157685 AU 452,021,464 km |
Orbital period | period |
5.2500 years 1,918.4430 days |
Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2016-Mar-15 12:17:43 2,457,463.0123 JD |
Next perihelion transit | 2021-Jun-15 22:55 2,459,381.4553 JD |
|
Argument of perihelion | peri | 351.90221537502° |
Longitude of the ascending node | node | 180.53122324159° |
Mean anomaly | M | 40.812037989448° |
Mean motion | n | 0.18765218°/day |
Visualization of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) 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 P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
---|---|---|---|---|
2021 Jan 18 | 02h 40m 14s | -06° 30’ 38” | 27.02 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 19 | 02h 40m 28s | -06° 23’ 44” | 27.00 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 20 | 02h 40m 45s | -06° 16’ 40” | 26.97 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 21 | 02h 41m 03s | -06° 09’ 25” | 26.95 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 22 | 02h 41m 25s | -06° 02’ 02” | 26.93 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 23 | 02h 41m 48s | -05° 54’ 29” | 26.90 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 24 | 02h 42m 11s | -05° 46’ 46” | 26.88 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 25 | 02h 42m 38s | -05° 38’ 56” | 26.85 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 26 | 02h 43m 05s | -05° 30’ 56” | 26.83 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 27 | 02h 43m 36s | -05° 22’ 49” | 26.80 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 28 | 02h 44m 08s | -05° 14’ 34” | 26.78 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 29 | 02h 44m 42s | -05° 06’ 10” | 26.75 | Cetus |
2021 Jan 30 | 02h 45m 17s | -04° 57’ 38” | 26.73 | Eridanus |
2021 Jan 31 | 02h 45m 55s | -04° 49’ 00” | 26.70 | Eridanus |