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🌎  Observing from: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]
🌅 Sunrise: 6:50  ☀️ Transit: 13:04  🌅 Sunset: 19:19

Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3)

Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) is currently in the constellation of Aquila. The current Right Ascension of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) is 19h 40m 18s and the Declination is -10° 56’ 38” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]). The current estimated magnitude of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) is 35.08 (JPL).

19h 40m 18s
-10° 56’ 38”
Aquila
35.08

Today's rise, transit and set times of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change] (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 100.9°
Max altitude: 27.6°
Azimuth: 259.1°
  • P/2016 J3 (STEREO) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change].
  • Right now it is placed in the East-South-East direction at an altitude of 0° above the horizon.
  • Given its current magnitude, P/2016 J3 (STEREO) 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 P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) 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 P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) in Aquila on March, 26 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Map showing Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) in Aquila on March, 26 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 P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

P/2016 J3 (STEREO)
RA: 19h 40m 18s
Dec: -10° 56’ 38”
Deep sky finder chart for Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3)
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) Distance from Earth

The distance of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) from Earth is currently 791,776,808 kilometers, equivalent to 5.292701 Astronomical Units. Light takes 44 minutes and 1.0831 seconds to travel from Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) and arrive to us.

791,776,808
5.292701
44 minutes and 1.0831 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) 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 P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) 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 P/2016 J3 (STEREO) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) to Earth happens on Thu Nov 17 2072 at a distance of 0.350467 Astronomical Units, or 52,429,088 kilometers:

Thu Nov 17 2072
52,429,088
0.350467

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

Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) Brightness

The current visual magnitude of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) is 35.08.

35.08
-
-

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 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3), 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 P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) as a function of time

Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) at epoch 13 January 2021 00:00 UTC (JD: 2459228.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.81169143
Orbit inclination i 23.38406036°
Perihelion distance q 0.52636420 AU
78,742,963 km
Aphelion distance Q 5.06407920 AU
757,575,466 km
Semi-major axis a 2.79522170 AU
418,159,215 km
Orbital period period 4.6734 years
1,706.9579 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2021-Jan-25 09:16:09
2,459,239.8862 JD
Next perihelion transit 2025-Sep-28 08:15
2,460,946.8441 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 210.73647687976°
Longitude of the ascending node node 257.78860525607°
Mean anomaly M 357.59862813385°
Mean motion n 0.21090151°/day

Visualization of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) 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 P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3)
View Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet P/2016 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) 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 J3 (STEREO = 2021 A3) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 Mar 19 19h 37m 24s -11° 21’ 51” 35.11 Aquila
2023 Mar 20 19h 37m 51s -11° 18’ 19” 35.11 Aquila
2023 Mar 21 19h 38m 17s -11° 14’ 45” 35.10 Aquila
2023 Mar 22 19h 38m 41s -11° 11’ 12” 35.10 Aquila
2023 Mar 23 19h 39m 06s -11° 07’ 40” 35.09 Aquila
2023 Mar 24 19h 39m 29s -11° 04’ 05” 35.09 Aquila
2023 Mar 25 19h 39m 52s -11° 00’ 33” 35.08 Aquila
2023 Mar 26 19h 40m 15s -10° 56’ 58” 35.08 Aquila
2023 Mar 27 19h 40m 37s -10° 53’ 24” 35.07 Aquila
2023 Mar 28 19h 40m 59s -10° 49’ 50” 35.07 Aquila
2023 Mar 29 19h 41m 20s -10° 46’ 15” 35.06 Aquila
2023 Mar 30 19h 41m 39s -10° 42’ 42” 35.06 Aquila
2023 Mar 31 19h 41m 58s -10° 39’ 06” 35.05 Aquila
2023 Apr 01 19h 42m 17s -10° 35’ 32” 35.05 Aquila