|
C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) |
| ephemeris |
date |
magn |
radius |
delta |
ra |
dec |
elong |
phase |
PA |
| Perihelion | 24 Apr 2016 | 9.4 | 1.305 AU | 1.918 AU | 23h37m | +00°42' | 39.3° | 29.2° | 250° |
| Nearest approach | 22 Jun 2016 | 7.7 | 1.576 AU | 0.617 AU | 19h55m | -46°11' | 148.5° | 19.7° | 307° |
| Today | 29 Aug 2026 | 28.0 | 25.502 AU | 26.458 AU | 11h10m | -06°08' | 18.4° | 0.7° | 147° |
C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS)- 2026-08-29
astro.vanbuitenen.nl
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.
This lightcurve is being recalculated every 6 hours based on the available COBS/MPC observations (currently 6.8 + 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 C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) are:
e (Eccentricity) : 1.0008910
q (Perihelion distance) : 1.3049110
i (Inclination) : 163.05330
Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 132.03690
ω (Argument of perihelion) : 165.47000
L (Longitude of perihelion) : 145.96103
B (Latitude of perihelion) : 4.19373
T (Time of perihelion passage) : 2457502.84270
Epoch : 2026 Aug 27
Reference : MPC194135
Classification(s): : Nearly isotropic; New (a > 10000 AU)
Ephemerides
Date Time RA (2000) DEC (2000) delta radius elong phase PA magn
2026-08-28 00:00 UT 11 09 56.8 -06 07 30 26.444 25.495 19.6 0.8 145 28.0
2026-08-29 00:00 UT 11 10 04.4 -06 08 10 26.453 25.500 18.8 0.7 147 28.0
2026-08-29 11:39 UT 11 10 08.1 -06 08 30 26.458 25.502 18.4 0.7 147 28.0
2026-08-30 00:00 UT 11 10 12.0 -06 08 51 26.462 25.505 18.0 0.7 148 28.0
2026-08-31 00:00 UT 11 10 19.7 -06 09 32 26.471 25.510 17.3 0.7 150 28.0
2026-09-01 00:00 UT 11 10 27.4 -06 10 14 26.479 25.514 16.6 0.6 152 28.0
2026-09-02 00:00 UT 11 10 35.1 -06 10 56 26.487 25.519 15.9 0.6 154 28.0
2026-09-03 00:00 UT 11 10 42.8 -06 11 39 26.495 25.524 15.2 0.6 157 28.0
2026-09-04 00:00 UT 11 10 50.5 -06 12 22 26.503 25.528 14.5 0.6 159 28.0
2026-09-05 00:00 UT 11 10 58.2 -06 13 06 26.510 25.533 13.9 0.5 162 28.0
2026-09-06 00:00 UT 11 11 06.0 -06 13 50 26.517 25.538 13.3 0.5 165 28.0
2026-09-07 00:00 UT 11 11 13.7 -06 14 35 26.524 25.543 12.8 0.5 169 28.0
2026-09-08 00:00 UT 11 11 21.4 -06 15 20 26.530 25.547 12.3 0.5 172 28.0
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.
