A/2019 O4
ephemeris date magn radius delta ra dec elong phase PA
Nearest approach5 Sep 201921.13.876 AU3.034 AU 21h41m+26°58'141.7°9.3°149°
Perihelion11 Feb 202021.73.638 AU4.302 AU 20h29m+25°07'42.6°10.6°336°
Today15 Aug 202627.315.404 AU16.291 AU 11h05m-03°38'28.0°1.8°130°
A/2019 O4- 2026-08-15
astro.vanbuitenen.nl


 
-1 month
-1 week
-1 day
Now
+1 day
+1 week
+1 month

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 displayed light curve is calculated under the assumption that the object remains inactive. (H=15.10; G=.15).



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 A/2019 O4 are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.8905950
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 3.6380920
    i (Inclination)                 : 114.94770
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 354.90370
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 61.81160
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 316.70028
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 53.04983
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2458890.58820
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 191.76

    Epoch                           : 2026 May 29
    Reference                       : MPC194162

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

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-08-14 00:00 UT   11 05 00.4   -03 37 01    16.275   15.398   29.1    1.8   129   27.3 
2026-08-15 00:00 UT   11 05 10.9   -03 38 28    16.287   15.403   28.3    1.8   130   27.3 
2026-08-15 06:49 UT   11 05 13.8   -03 38 53    16.291   15.404   28.0    1.8   130   27.3 
2026-08-16 00:00 UT   11 05 21.4   -03 39 56    16.299   15.408   27.4    1.7   130   27.3 
2026-08-17 00:00 UT   11 05 31.9   -03 41 25    16.311   15.412   26.5    1.7   131   27.3 
2026-08-18 00:00 UT   11 05 42.6   -03 42 55    16.322   15.417   25.7    1.6   132   27.3 
2026-08-19 00:00 UT   11 05 53.3   -03 44 26    16.333   15.421   24.8    1.6   133   27.3 
2026-08-20 00:00 UT   11 06 04.0   -03 45 58    16.344   15.426   24.0    1.5   133   27.3 
2026-08-21 00:00 UT   11 06 14.9   -03 47 31    16.355   15.430   23.2    1.5   134   27.3 
2026-08-22 00:00 UT   11 06 25.7   -03 49 04    16.366   15.435   22.3    1.4   135   27.3 
2026-08-23 00:00 UT   11 06 36.7   -03 50 39    16.376   15.440   21.5    1.4   136   27.3 
2026-08-24 00:00 UT   11 06 47.6   -03 52 14    16.386   15.444   20.7    1.3   137   27.3 
2026-08-25 00:00 UT   11 06 58.7   -03 53 50    16.395   15.449   19.9    1.3   138   27.3 



    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.