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C/2017 K1 (PANSTARRS)
ephemeris date magn radius delta ra dec elong phase PA
Perihelion12 Mar 201819.77.261 AU6.670 AU 15h06m-15°28'123.2°6.6°285°
Nearest approach29 Apr 201819.67.268 AU6.262 AU 14h31m-10°52'176.2°0.5°201°
Today4 May 202625.918.240 AU18.512 AU 08h11m+45°10'72.8°3.0°96°
C/2017 K1 (PANSTARRS)- 2026-05-04
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. (7.0 + 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 C/2017 K1 (PANSTARRS) are: 

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.9999450
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 7.2611660
    i (Inclination)                 : 154.02810
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 225.68540
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 4.09570
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 222.00213
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 1.79240
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2458190.16120

    Epoch                           : 2026 May 03
    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
2026-05-03 00:00 UT   08 11 20.9   +45 12 31    18.480   18.233   74.2    3.0    96   25.9 
2026-05-04 00:00 UT   08 11 20.7   +45 11 07    18.500   18.237   73.4    3.0    96   25.9 
2026-05-04 15:26 UT   08 11 20.8   +45 10 13    18.512   18.240   72.8    3.0    96   25.9 
2026-05-05 00:00 UT   08 11 20.9   +45 09 43    18.519   18.242   72.5    3.0    95   25.9 
2026-05-06 00:00 UT   08 11 21.4   +45 08 19    18.538   18.246   71.6    3.0    95   26.0 
2026-05-07 00:00 UT   08 11 22.2   +45 06 55    18.558   18.251   70.8    3.0    95   26.0 
2026-05-08 00:00 UT   08 11 23.2   +45 05 31    18.577   18.255   69.9    3.0    94   26.0 
2026-05-09 00:00 UT   08 11 24.5   +45 04 07    18.596   18.259   69.0    3.0    94   26.0 
2026-05-10 00:00 UT   08 11 26.1   +45 02 43    18.615   18.264   68.2    2.9    93   26.0 
2026-05-11 00:00 UT   08 11 28.0   +45 01 19    18.633   18.268   67.3    2.9    93   26.0 
2026-05-12 00:00 UT   08 11 30.2   +44 59 55    18.652   18.273   66.5    2.9    92   26.0 
2026-05-13 00:00 UT   08 11 32.6   +44 58 31    18.671   18.277   65.6    2.9    92   26.0 
2026-05-14 00:00 UT   08 11 35.3   +44 57 07    18.689   18.281   64.8    2.9    91   26.0 




    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.

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