Comet 51P/Harrington
Comet 51P/Harrington is currently in the constellation of Cancer, at a distance of 712,221,660 kilometers from Earth.
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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.
Today's rise, transit and set times of Comet 51P/Harrington from Greenwich, United Kingdom (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- 51P/Harrington is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom.
- Right now it is placed in the West-South-West direction at an altitude of 50° above the horizon.
- Given its current magnitude, 51P/Harrington is visible only through long exposure photography.
- Go to interactive sky chart
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Comet 51P/Harrington Position and Finder Charts
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
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Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 51P/Harrington is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet 51P/Harrington?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 51P/Harrington in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet 51P/Harrington Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet 51P/Harrington from Earth is currently 712,221,660 kilometers, equivalent to 4.760908 Astronomical Units. Light takes 39 minutes and 35.7157 seconds to travel from Comet 51P/Harrington and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 51P/Harrington 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 51P/Harrington from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach of Comet 51P/Harrington to Earth
Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 51P/Harrington to Earth happens on Mon Sep 5 2022 at a distance of 0.719952 Astronomical Units, or 107,703,295 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet 51P/Harrington Brightness and Light Curve
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 51P/Harrington, 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 51P/Harrington 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 51P/Harrington computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 51P/Harrington in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 May 08 | 08h 05m 48s | +24° 11’ 13” | 25.52 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 09 | 08h 06m 28s | +24° 08’ 53” | 25.53 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 10 | 08h 07m 08s | +24° 06’ 33” | 25.54 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 11 | 08h 07m 48s | +24° 04’ 09” | 25.55 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 12 | 08h 08m 29s | +24° 01’ 44” | 25.56 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 13 | 08h 09m 10s | +23° 59’ 17” | 25.57 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 14 | 08h 09m 51s | +23° 56’ 48” | 25.58 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 15 | 08h 10m 33s | +23° 54’ 18” | 25.59 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 16 | 08h 11m 17s | +23° 51’ 46” | 25.60 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 17 | 08h 11m 59s | +23° 49’ 13” | 25.62 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 18 | 08h 12m 43s | +23° 46’ 36” | 25.63 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 19 | 08h 13m 27s | +23° 43’ 59” | 25.64 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 20 | 08h 14m 12s | +23° 41’ 21” | 25.65 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 21 | 08h 14m 57s | +23° 38’ 41” | 25.66 | Cancer |