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C/2017 F2 (PANSTARRS)
ephemeris date magn radius delta ra dec elong phase PA
Perihelion26 Nov 201720.26.899 AU7.353 AU 13h19m+20°41'59.1°7.1°312°
Nearest approach31 Mar 201819.86.947 AU6.042 AU 13h23m+20°28'153.0°3.7°206°
Today5 Apr 202626.618.683 AU18.505 AU 18h26m-59°30'98.7°3.0°273°
C/2017 F2 (PANSTARRS)- 2026-04-05
astro.vanbuitenen.nl


 
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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. (7.5 + 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/2017 F2 (PANSTARRS) are: 

    e (Eccentricity)                : 1.0020970
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 6.8989700
    i (Inclination)                 : 42.53460
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 38.65050
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 134.75550
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 2.03132
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 28.68963
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2458084.42150

    Epoch                           : 2026 Apr 04
    Reference                       : MPEC 2026-E44

    Classification(s):              : Nearly isotropic; New (a > 10000 AU)

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-04-04 00:00 UT   18 26 06.7   -59 28 22    18.514   18.678   97.9    3.0   273   26.6 
2026-04-05 00:00 UT   18 26 07.8   -59 30 28    18.505   18.683   98.7    3.0   273   26.6 
2026-04-05 00:19 UT   18 26 07.8   -59 30 29    18.505   18.683   98.7    3.0   273   26.6 
2026-04-06 00:00 UT   18 26 08.5   -59 32 33    18.496   18.687   99.5    3.0   274   26.6 
2026-04-07 00:00 UT   18 26 08.8   -59 34 39    18.487   18.692  100.2    3.0   274   26.6 
2026-04-08 00:00 UT   18 26 08.7   -59 36 44    18.478   18.696  101.0    3.0   275   26.6 
2026-04-09 00:00 UT   18 26 08.1   -59 38 49    18.470   18.701  101.8    3.0   276   26.6 
2026-04-10 00:00 UT   18 26 07.1   -59 40 54    18.461   18.705  102.6    3.0   276   26.6 
2026-04-11 00:00 UT   18 26 05.7   -59 42 59    18.452   18.709  103.4    3.0   277   26.6 
2026-04-12 00:00 UT   18 26 03.8   -59 45 03    18.443   18.714  104.1    3.0   277   26.6 
2026-04-13 00:00 UT   18 26 01.6   -59 47 08    18.435   18.718  104.9    3.0   278   26.6 
2026-04-14 00:00 UT   18 25 58.9   -59 49 11    18.426   18.723  105.7    3.0   279   26.6 
2026-04-15 00:00 UT   18 25 55.8   -59 51 15    18.418   18.727  106.5    2.9   279   26.6 




    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.

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