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Comets » 

Comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF)

Below the horizon.  Never rises today
Alt: -48.12°   Az: 207.14°   Direction: South-South-West

Comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) is in the constellation of Indus, at a distance of 1,062,965,403.0 kilometers from Earth. The current Right Ascension is 21h 43m 17s and the Declination is -72° 16’ 03” (apparent coordinates). The estimated magnitude of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF), computed using JPL Horizons's data, is 16.95).

Finder Charts

The sky charts below show, at different resolutions, the position of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) in the sky. Click on each chart to access the interactive star map tool.

Star map showing the position of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) in the constellation of Indus on F, d Y. Field of view: 50x30 degrees. View interactive star map.
Star map showing the position of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) in the constellation of Indus on F, d Y. Field of view: 15x9 degrees. View in interactive star map.

The following map uses photographic imagery from the Digitized Sky Survey (DSS) to realistically visualize the precise position of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) against the stars in the background. The horizontal size of the map measures 60 arcminutes. Click on the image to access a more detailed full-screen view.

C/2020 V2 (ZTF)
RA: 21h 40m 58s
Dec: -72° 23’ 04”
Simplified high-resolution deep sky chart showing the current position of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF). Field of view: 60 x 40 arcminutes. Go to the dedicated page

Equatorial Coordinates

Apparent

21h 43m 17s
-72° 16’ 03”
05h 59m 10s
03h 42m 28s

J2000

21h 40m 58s
-72° 23’ 04”

Additional Information

Indus
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
16.95

The observed values of Magnitude, Coma Diameter and Tail Length are derived from the most recent observation recorded at the Comet Observers Database. The value of Predicted Magnitude comes from the JPL Horizons ephemerides service and, in the case of comets, might be inaccurate given the highly dynamic and unpredictable behavior of these objects. When available, please refer to the Observed Magnitude value and consider the Predicted 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.

Rise and Set Times

The following table lists today's rise, transit and set times of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) from Greenwich, UK (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Greenwich, UKToday comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) is not visible from

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 comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) from Earth is currently 1,062,965,403.0 kilometers, equivalent to 7.1054848443 Astronomical Units. Light takes 59m 5.671s to travel from comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) and arrive to us.

1,062,965,403.0
7.1054848443
59m 5.671s

The following graph shows the distance of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) from Earth as a function of time. In the chart the distance is measured in Astronomical Units and the data is sampled with an interval of 1 day.

Chart of the distance of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) from Earth in Astronomical Units (au)
Note: The values in this chart may not be entirely accurate around the time of closest approach for objects passing very close to Earth at high speed (e.g., Near-Earth Objects).

The value of the distance of C/2020 V2 (ZTF) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the live position tracker.

Closest Approach to Earth

In the period between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2099, the closest approach of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) to Earth happened on Sunday 17 September 2023 at a distance of 1.854744 Astronomical Units, or 277,465,826 kilometers:

Sunday 17 September 2023
277,465,826
1.854744

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

Light Curve

The following chart shows the light curve of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF), i.e., its apparent magnitude as a function of time. The curve is calculated using the latest ephemerides provided by JPL Horizons. The magnitude data is sampled with the interval of 2 days. Because of this sampling, inaccuracies may occur for objects that have large variations of brightness over a few days. For comets, large discrepancies can arise between the calculated brightness and the observations due to their highly dynamic, and not always precisely predictable, behavior.

Chart of the magnitude of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) as a function of time

Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) at epoch August, 27 2022 00:00 UTC (JD: 2459819.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 1.00094983
Orbit inclination i 131.61104352°
Perihelion distance q 2.22800867 AU
333,305,354 km
Aphelion distance Q n.a.
Semi-major axis a n.a.
Orbital period period n.a.
Date of perihelion transit Tp May 8, 2023
2,460,073.0482 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 162.42111686819°
Longitude of the ascending node node 212.37058894721°
Mean anomaly M -0.002199672298192°
Mean motion n 0.00000868°/day

Orbit Visualization

The following chart is a 3D animated visualization of the orbit of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) relative to the other major objects in the Solar System. You can access more advanced features using our 3D Solar System Viewer.

15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) 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
Jun 21 2025 21h 54m 32s -71° 21’ 57” 16.93 Indus
Jun 22 2025 21h 53m 08s -71° 29’ 37” 16.94 Indus
Jun 23 2025 21h 51m 42s -71° 37’ 09” 16.94 Indus
Jun 24 2025 21h 50m 14s -71° 44’ 37” 16.94 Indus
Jun 25 2025 21h 48m 43s -71° 51’ 58” 16.94 Indus
Jun 26 2025 21h 47m 10s -71° 59’ 13” 16.95 Indus
Jun 27 2025 21h 45m 34s -72° 06’ 22” 16.95 Indus
Jun 28 2025 21h 43m 56s -72° 13’ 23” 16.95 Indus
Jun 29 2025 21h 42m 15s -72° 20’ 16” 16.96 Indus
Jun 30 2025 21h 40m 32s -72° 27’ 02” 16.96 Indus
Jul 01 2025 21h 38m 47s -72° 33’ 39” 16.96 Indus
Jul 02 2025 21h 36m 59s -72° 40’ 10” 16.97 Indus
Jul 03 2025 21h 35m 09s -72° 46’ 30” 16.97 Indus
Jul 04 2025 21h 33m 17s -72° 52’ 43” 16.97 Pavo

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