2P/Encke
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Today	18 Jul 2025	20.3	4.090 AU	3.468 AU	23h37m	-00°10'	121.3°	12.3°	245°
Nearest approach	3 Feb 2027	3.8	0.381 AU	0.624 AU	21h33m	-10°31'	8.7°	156.9°	46°
Perihelion	10 Feb 2027	4.2	0.339 AU	0.679 AU	20h54m	-18°09'	10.0°	149.7°	250°

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.)

The orbital elements of 2P/Encke are:

            e (Eccentricity)                : 0.8471380
            q (Perihelion distance)         : 0.3390720
            i (Inclination)                 : 11.34460
            Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 334.01500
            ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 187.27920
            L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 341.15346
            B (Latitude of perihelion)      : -1.42819
            T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2461446.76020
            P (Orbital period in years)     : 3.30

            Epoch                           : 2025 Jul 17
            Reference                       : MPEC 2025-N64

            Classification(s):              : Ecliptic; Encke type
            Tisserand (Jupiter)             : 3.026
        

The light curve chart below shows the estimated development of the comet's magnitude. Blue and black dots are visual and photometric CCD observations respectively from COBS or the MPC. The light curve is estimated manually by the author. (11.50 + 5 log[∆] + 10.00 log[r]). The additional green curve shows the effect of forward scattering, occurring when the comet is between the earth and the sun, for a gas-to-dust light ratio δ90 of 0.30. (See Marcus 2007)

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.
A more printer-friendly version of the same chart can be found further down this page as well.

The following chart shows the current location of the comet in a smaller, upside-down telescopic field of view.

A printable version of the short-term path of the comet in a field of view that is optimized for (~10x50) binoculars and finderscopes.

Ephemerides:

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2025-07-18 00:00 UT   23 38 18.9   +00 09 34     3.482    4.090  120.3   12.4   245   20.3 
2025-07-18 22:50 UT   23 37 58.4   +00 10 36     3.468    4.090  121.3   12.3   245   20.3 
2025-07-19 00:00 UT   23 37 57.3   +00 10 39     3.468    4.090  121.4   12.3   245   20.3 
2025-07-20 00:00 UT   23 37 34.7   +00 11 52     3.454    4.089  122.4   12.1   245   20.3 
2025-07-21 00:00 UT   23 37 11.1   +00 13 11     3.440    4.089  123.5   12.0   245   20.3 
2025-07-22 00:00 UT   23 36 46.4   +00 14 37     3.426    4.088  124.5   11.8   245   20.3 
2025-07-23 00:00 UT   23 36 20.7   +00 16 09     3.412    4.088  125.6   11.7   245   20.3 
2025-07-24 00:00 UT   23 35 53.9   +00 17 48     3.399    4.087  126.6   11.5   245   20.3 
2025-07-25 00:00 UT   23 35 26.0   +00 19 33     3.385    4.086  127.7   11.3   245   20.3 
2025-07-26 00:00 UT   23 34 57.1   +00 21 25     3.372    4.086  128.8   11.2   245   20.3 
2025-07-27 00:00 UT   23 34 27.2   +00 23 24     3.359    4.085  129.9   11.0   245   20.2 
2025-07-28 00:00 UT   23 33 56.2   +00 25 29     3.346    4.085  131.0   10.8   245   20.2 

    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.