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°42'	71.1°	34.2°	105°
Perihelion	21 Jul 2019	-	1.710 AU	1.757 AU	13h57m	+70°10'	70.4°	34.0°	96°
Today	17 Oct 2026	-	19.399 AU	19.860 AU	09h48m	-50°58'	61.2°	2.6°	247°

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)                : 0.9970940
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 1.7101950
    i (Inclination)                 : 105.11270
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 25.35710
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 98.46670
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 85.63295
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 72.72556
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2458686.04890
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 14276.61

    Epoch                           : 2026 May 29
    Reference                       : MPC194161

    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
2026-10-16 00:00 UT   09 48 07.7   -50 55 12    19.858   19.392   60.8    2.6   246   31.7 
2026-10-17 00:00 UT   09 48 15.0   -50 57 51    19.859   19.398   61.1    2.6   247   31.7 
2026-10-17 07:27 UT   09 48 17.2   -50 58 40    19.860   19.399   61.2    2.6   247   31.7 
2026-10-18 00:00 UT   09 48 22.1   -51 00 31    19.861   19.403   61.3    2.6   248   31.7 
2026-10-19 00:00 UT   09 48 28.9   -51 03 11    19.862   19.408   61.6    2.6   249   31.7 
2026-10-20 00:00 UT   09 48 35.4   -51 05 53    19.863   19.413   61.8    2.6   250   31.7 
2026-10-21 00:00 UT   09 48 41.7   -51 08 36    19.864   19.419   62.1    2.6   251   31.7 
2026-10-22 00:00 UT   09 48 47.7   -51 11 19    19.864   19.424   62.4    2.6   252   31.7 
2026-10-23 00:00 UT   09 48 53.4   -51 14 03    19.865   19.429   62.7    2.6   253   31.7 
2026-10-24 00:00 UT   09 48 58.9   -51 16 49    19.866   19.434   63.0    2.6   254   31.7 
2026-10-25 00:00 UT   09 49 04.1   -51 19 34    19.866   19.440   63.3    2.6   255   31.7 
2026-10-26 00:00 UT   09 49 09.0   -51 22 21    19.866   19.445   63.6    2.6   256   31.7 
2026-10-27 00:00 UT   09 49 13.7   -51 25 08    19.866   19.450   63.9    2.6   257   31.7 

    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.