Pluto
Pluto is in the constellation of
Capricornus,
at a distance of
Finder Charts
View interactive star map
High precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Pluto is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Pluto?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Pluto in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Celestial Coordinates
Apparent
J2000
Additional Information
Rise and Set Times
Today's rise, transit and set times of Pluto from Greenwich, UK (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- Pluto is below the horizon from Greenwich, UK.
- Given its current magnitude, Pluto is visible with the help of a telescope having an aperture of 8 inches (200mm) or more.
- 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.
Distance from Earth
The distance of Pluto from Earth is currently
The following chart shows the distance of Pluto 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 Pluto from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach
Between 1 January 1900 and 29 December 2099, the closest approach of Pluto to Earth happens on Tue May 8 1990 at a distance of 28.686952 Astronomical Units, or 4,291,506,906 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Light Curve
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Pluto, 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.
Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Pluto at epoch 18 July 2016 00:00 UTC (JD: 2457588.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.25183788 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 17.14771141° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 29.61871297 AU 4,430,896,403 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
49.55854580 AU 7,413,852,941 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
39.58862939 AU 5,922,374,672 km |
| Orbital period | period |
249.0944 years 90,981.7165 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 1989-Oct-12 14:15:35 2,447,812.0942 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2238-Nov-18 07:27 2,538,793.8106 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 113.70900151586° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 110.29238405431° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 38.683663473182° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.00395684°/day |
Physical Data
The following shows the known values of the most important physical parameters of Pluto. Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Physical Parameter | Value | Relative to Earth |
|---|---|---|
| Diameter | 2302 km | 0.1807 |
| Mass | 0.01309 x 1024 kg | 0.0022 |
| Density | 2.05 gr/cm3 | 0.3718 |
| Escape Velocity | 1.23 km/s | 0.1099 |
| Sideral Rotation | -153.2928 hours | -6.4047 |
| Absolute Magnitude | -1 | |
| Geometric Albedo | 0.3 |
15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Pluto computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Apparent celestial coordinates are provided.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 May 28 | 20h 27m 40s | -22° 50’ 42” | 14.50 | Capricornus |
| 2025 May 29 | 20h 27m 38s | -22° 51’ 02” | 14.49 | Capricornus |
| 2025 May 30 | 20h 27m 35s | -22° 51’ 21” | 14.49 | Capricornus |
| 2025 May 31 | 20h 27m 33s | -22° 51’ 41” | 14.49 | Capricornus |
| 2025 Jun 01 | 20h 27m 30s | -22° 52’ 01” | 14.49 | Capricornus |
| 2025 Jun 02 | 20h 27m 27s | -22° 52’ 21” | 14.49 | Capricornus |
| 2025 Jun 03 | 20h 27m 24s | -22° 52’ 42” | 14.49 | Capricornus |
| 2025 Jun 04 | 20h 27m 21s | -22° 53’ 03” | 14.49 | Capricornus |
| 2025 Jun 05 | 20h 27m 17s | -22° 53’ 25” | 14.48 | Capricornus |
| 2025 Jun 06 | 20h 27m 14s | -22° 53’ 46” | 14.48 | Capricornus |
| 2025 Jun 07 | 20h 27m 11s | -22° 54’ 08” | 14.48 | Capricornus |
| 2025 Jun 08 | 20h 27m 07s | -22° 54’ 30” | 14.48 | Capricornus |
| 2025 Jun 09 | 20h 27m 04s | -22° 54’ 52” | 14.48 | Capricornus |
| 2025 Jun 10 | 20h 27m 00s | -22° 55’ 14” | 14.48 | Capricornus |
Additional Resources on TheSkyLive
- Pluto: Complete reference information on TheSkyLive.com.
- Where is Pluto?: Key information on locating Pluto in the sky.
- Distance from Earth: Find out how far Pluto is from Earth right now.
- How Bright is Pluto?: Current visual brightness (magnitude) and apparent size.
- Rise and Set Times: Pluto's rise and set times from your location.
- Interactive Sky Map: planetarium-style interactive visualization of Pluto's position in the sky.
- Live Position Tracker: high precision position tracker with deep space imagery.
- Ephemeris: 15 days Pluto's computed ephemeris.
- Orbital elements: information about Pluto orbital parameters.
- Physical Data. Detailed information about physical properties of Pluto, such as mass and geometric properties.