11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Today	14 Apr 2026	23.2	2.471 AU	2.833 AU	21h36m	-02°07'	59.0°	20.4°	258°
Perihelion	9 Nov 2026	16.4	1.387 AU	0.402 AU	02h47m	+26°54'	169.7°	7.3°	165°
Nearest approach	11 Nov 2026	16.4	1.388 AU	0.401 AU	02h49m	+25°47'	170.8°	6.5°	154°

The interactive orbit chart above shows the comet's path through the solar system and its position at the given date. Green and blue lines are shown perpendicular to the ecliptic plane: Green if the path is above the ecliptic plane, blue if it is below. (Left-click and drag to rotate the view; Right-click and drag to move the view; Use scroll wheel to zoom in our out.)

Light curve

The light curve chart below shows the estimated development of the comet's magnitude. Blue and black dots are visual and photometric CCD observations from COBS. The light curve is based on the absolute magnitude and slope parameter as calculated from an MPEC, or the latest values provided by the minor planet center. (17.0 + 5 log[∆] + 10.0 log[r]). An additional green curve is displayed when an increase in apparent brightness is expected due to forward scattering of sunlight, which occurs when a dust-rich comet is located between the Earth and the Sun. (See Marcus 2007)

Charts

The all-sky chart below shows the path of the comet over the same period as the light curve. The comet's current position is marked yellow.

The following chart shows the short-term path of the comet in a field of view that is optimized for (~10x50) binoculars and finderscopes.

Orbital elements

The orbital elements of 11P/Tempel-Swift-LINEAR are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.5773260
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 1.3874340
    i (Inclination)                 : 14.43070
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 238.85490
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 168.06650
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 227.28760
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 2.95379
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2461354.43270
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 5.95

    Epoch                           : 2026 Apr 13
    Reference                       : MPC191593

    Classification(s):              : Ecliptic; Jupiter family
    Tisserand (Jupiter)             : 2.841

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-04-13 00:00 UT   21 34 07.1   -02 22 05     2.853    2.479   58.4   20.1   258   23.2 
2026-04-14 00:00 UT   21 35 39.7   -02 10 21     2.837    2.473   58.9   20.3   258   23.2 
2026-04-14 05:20 UT   21 36 00.2   -02 07 44     2.833    2.471   59.0   20.4   258   23.2 
2026-04-15 00:00 UT   21 37 12.2   -01 58 32     2.820    2.466   59.4   20.5   258   23.2 
2026-04-16 00:00 UT   21 38 44.7   -01 46 38     2.803    2.459   60.0   20.7   257   23.1 
2026-04-17 00:00 UT   21 40 17.2   -01 34 39     2.786    2.453   60.5   20.9   257   23.1 
2026-04-18 00:00 UT   21 41 49.6   -01 22 35     2.769    2.446   61.0   21.0   257   23.1 
2026-04-19 00:00 UT   21 43 21.9   -01 10 26     2.752    2.440   61.6   21.2   257   23.1 
2026-04-20 00:00 UT   21 44 54.2   +00 58 11     2.735    2.433   62.1   21.4   257   23.0 
2026-04-21 00:00 UT   21 46 26.4   +00 45 52     2.718    2.426   62.6   21.6   256   23.0 
2026-04-22 00:00 UT   21 47 58.6   +00 33 27     2.701    2.420   63.2   21.8   256   23.0 
2026-04-23 00:00 UT   21 49 30.8   +00 20 58     2.684    2.413   63.7   21.9   256   23.0 
2026-04-24 00:00 UT   21 51 02.8   +00 08 23     2.667    2.406   64.2   22.1   256   22.9 

    Terminology:
            
    delta:  distance between comet and earth in AU
    radius: distance between comet and sun in AU
    magn:   magnitude (brightness) estimate    
    ra:     right ascension in hours (24h = 360deg)
    dec:    declination in degrees
    elong:  elongation in degrees (angle sun-earth-comet)    
    phase:  phase angle in degrees (angle sun-comet-earth)        
    AU:     Astronomical Unit (mean distance between earth and sun: 149597870.7 km      
    

Orbital elements usually provided by the MPC (Minor Planet Center).
Observations contributed by observers worldwide, via COBS (Comet Observation Database) or the MPC (Minor Planet Center)
Calculations by a modified version of AAPlus, a C# implementation of the AA+ project by PJ Naughter from the algorithms presented in the book "Astronomical Algorithms" by Jean Meeus.
NGC2000 dso catalog and star labels from VizieR as provided by the Strasbourg astronomical Data Center.
Tycho2 catalog from the ESO archive.