C/2019 J2 (Palomar) - DISINTEGRATED
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Disintegration	6 Jul 2019	15.9	1.722 AU	1.767 AU	17h36m	+86°20'	70.7°	33.9°	160°
Nearest approach	14 Jul 2019	-	1.712 AU	1.745 AU	14h18m	+77°41'	71.1°	34.2°	105°
Perihelion	21 Jul 2019	-	1.710 AU	1.757 AU	13h57m	+70°09'	70.4°	34.0°	96°
Today	15 May 2026	-	18.584 AU	18.329 AU	09h18m	-51°01'	103.0°	3.0°	104°

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 12.4 + 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/2019 J2 (Palomar) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.9970970
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 1.7101950
    i (Inclination)                 : 105.11490
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 25.36160
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 98.46820
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 85.63652
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 72.72294
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2458686.06470
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 14298.74

    Epoch                           : 2026 May 15
    Reference                       : MPEC 2026-FR0

    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
2026-05-14 00:00 UT   09 18 38.1   -51 06 57    18.307   18.574  103.8    3.0   102   31.4 
2026-05-15 00:00 UT   09 18 38.3   -51 04 10    18.319   18.580  103.4    3.0   103   31.4 
2026-05-15 18:45 UT   09 18 38.7   -51 01 59    18.329   18.584  103.0    3.0   104   31.4 
2026-05-16 00:00 UT   09 18 38.8   -51 01 23    18.332   18.585  102.9    3.0   104   31.4 
2026-05-17 00:00 UT   09 18 39.7   -50 58 38    18.345   18.590  102.5    3.0   105   31.4 
2026-05-18 00:00 UT   09 18 40.8   -50 55 53    18.357   18.596  102.1    3.0   106   31.4 
2026-05-19 00:00 UT   09 18 42.3   -50 53 10    18.370   18.601  101.6    3.1   107   31.4 
2026-05-20 00:00 UT   09 18 44.1   -50 50 28    18.383   18.606  101.2    3.1   108   31.4 
2026-05-21 00:00 UT   09 18 46.2   -50 47 47    18.396   18.612  100.7    3.1   109   31.4 
2026-05-22 00:00 UT   09 18 48.6   -50 45 07    18.409   18.617  100.3    3.1   110   31.4 
2026-05-23 00:00 UT   09 18 51.3   -50 42 28    18.422   18.622   99.8    3.1   110   31.4 
2026-05-24 00:00 UT   09 18 54.4   -50 39 51    18.435   18.628   99.4    3.1   111   31.4 
2026-05-25 00:00 UT   09 18 57.7   -50 37 16    18.449   18.633   98.9    3.1   112   31.4 

    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.