Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS)
Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) is a comet discovered by the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System (Pan-STARRS) on January 10, 2022. The comet has a parabolic-like and retrograde orbit with a perihelion distance of 1.73 astronomical units (AU). It has reached its maximum brightness in January 2023, during its perihelion passage, and now it is becoming fainter as it is moving away from the sun.
Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) is currently in the constellation of Cetus, at a distance of 853,492,311 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 C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) from Greenwich, United Kingdom (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom.
- Right now it is placed in the South-South-East direction at an altitude of 20° above the horizon.
- Given its current magnitude, C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) is visible only through long exposure photography.
- Go to interactive sky chart
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Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) 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 C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) from Earth is currently 853,492,311 kilometers, equivalent to 5.705244 Astronomical Units. Light takes 47 minutes and 26.9439 seconds to travel from Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet C/2022 A2 (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 C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach of Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) to Earth
Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) to Earth happens on Tue Jan 17 2023 at a distance of 1.612790 Astronomical Units, or 241,269,937 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) Brightness and Light Curve
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet C/2022 A2 (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 C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) at epoch 11 July 2022 00:00 UTC (JD: 2459772.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 1.00052545 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 108.14817841° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.73528351 AU 259,594,718 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q | n.a. |
| Semi-major axis | a | n.a. |
| Orbital period | period | n.a. |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2023-Feb-18 06:01:09 2,459,993.7508 JD |
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 88.362599362381° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 171.58022235331° |
| Mean anomaly | M | -0.0011490267918613° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.00000519°/day |
Visualization of Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet C/2022 A2 (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 C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 May 09 | 00h 07m 29s | -16° 08’ 54” | 20.62 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 10 | 00h 07m 55s | -16° 12’ 28” | 20.63 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 11 | 00h 08m 21s | -16° 16’ 06” | 20.63 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 12 | 00h 08m 48s | -16° 19’ 50” | 20.64 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 13 | 00h 09m 12s | -16° 23’ 39” | 20.65 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 14 | 00h 09m 38s | -16° 27’ 34” | 20.65 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 15 | 00h 10m 01s | -16° 31’ 35” | 20.66 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 16 | 00h 10m 26s | -16° 35’ 39” | 20.67 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 17 | 00h 10m 49s | -16° 39’ 51” | 20.67 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 18 | 00h 11m 12s | -16° 44’ 07” | 20.68 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 19 | 00h 11m 34s | -16° 48’ 28” | 20.68 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 20 | 00h 11m 56s | -16° 52’ 54” | 20.69 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 21 | 00h 12m 17s | -16° 57’ 28” | 20.70 | Cetus |
| 2024 May 22 | 00h 12m 38s | -17° 02’ 06” | 20.70 | Cetus |