C/2017 T3 (ATLAS)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Perihelion	19 Jul 2018	9.1	0.821 AU	1.418 AU	06h44m	-09°11'	34.7°	44.8°	210°
Nearest approach	1 Aug 2018	9.2	0.858 AU	1.347 AU	08h08m	-20°29'	39.6°	48.9°	195°
Today	2 Feb 2026	29.6	20.793 AU	20.926 AU	16h14m	+23°13'	80.8°	2.7°	293°

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 9.3 + 5 log[∆] + 10.4 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 T3 (ATLAS) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.9993860
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 0.8213790
    i (Inclination)                 : 88.29950
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 230.26570
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 246.77190
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 234.22102
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : -66.71318
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2458319.25380
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 48928.61

    Epoch                           : 2023 Sep 24
    Reference                       : MPC114600

    Classification(s):              : Nearly isotropic; Returning (a < 10000 AU); External (P > 200 years)

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-02-01 00:00 UT   16 14 01.3   +23 11 29    20.934   20.787   80.0    2.7   294   29.6 
2026-02-02 00:00 UT   16 14 06.3   +23 13 22    20.927   20.792   80.8    2.7   293   29.6 
2026-02-02 02:48 UT   16 14 06.8   +23 13 35    20.926   20.793   80.8    2.7   293   29.6 
2026-02-03 00:00 UT   16 14 11.1   +23 15 15    20.920   20.798   81.5    2.7   292   29.6 
2026-02-04 00:00 UT   16 14 15.7   +23 17 10    20.913   20.803   82.2    2.7   292   29.6 
2026-02-05 00:00 UT   16 14 20.1   +23 19 06    20.906   20.808   82.9    2.7   291   29.6 
2026-02-06 00:00 UT   16 14 24.4   +23 21 03    20.899   20.813   83.6    2.7   290   29.6 
2026-02-07 00:00 UT   16 14 28.4   +23 23 01    20.891   20.818   84.4    2.7   290   29.6 
2026-02-08 00:00 UT   16 14 32.2   +23 25 00    20.884   20.824   85.1    2.7   289   29.6 
2026-02-09 00:00 UT   16 14 35.9   +23 27 01    20.877   20.829   85.8    2.7   288   29.6 
2026-02-10 00:00 UT   16 14 39.3   +23 29 02    20.869   20.834   86.6    2.7   287   29.6 
2026-02-11 00:00 UT   16 14 42.5   +23 31 04    20.862   20.839   87.3    2.7   287   29.6 
2026-02-12 00:00 UT   16 14 45.6   +23 33 08    20.855   20.844   88.0    2.7   286   29.6 

    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.