C/2020 F2 (ATLAS)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Nearest approach	19 Apr 2022	18.0	8.827 AU	7.845 AU	14h00m	+01°17'	167.2°	1.4°	193°
Perihelion	12 Jul 2022	18.2	8.814 AU	8.805 AU	13h19m	+04°45'	87.2°	6.6°	112°
Today	20 Jan 2026	19.8	11.437 AU	10.580 AU	10h21m	+28°41'	149.3°	2.5°	261°

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 4.1 + 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/2020 F2 (ATLAS) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 1.0016950
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 8.8139440
    i (Inclination)                 : 163.59000
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 250.29510
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 48.22370
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 203.25771
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 12.16229
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2459772.52510

    Epoch                           : 2026 Jan 20
    Reference                       : MPEC 2025-X35

    Classification(s):              : Nearly isotropic; New (a > 10000 AU)

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-01-19 00:00 UT   10 22 02.1   +28 34 38    10.589   11.431  147.4    2.7   263   19.8 
2026-01-20 00:00 UT   10 21 33.2   +28 37 54    10.585   11.434  148.3    2.6   262   19.8 
2026-01-20 23:15 UT   10 21 04.9   +28 41 03    10.580   11.437  149.3    2.5   261   19.8 
2026-01-21 00:00 UT   10 21 04.0   +28 41 09    10.580   11.437  149.3    2.5   261   19.8 
2026-01-22 00:00 UT   10 20 34.5   +28 44 24    10.576   11.441  150.2    2.5   260   19.8 
2026-01-23 00:00 UT   10 20 04.7   +28 47 37    10.572   11.444  151.1    2.4   258   19.8 
2026-01-24 00:00 UT   10 19 34.7   +28 50 50    10.569   11.448  152.0    2.3   257   19.8 
2026-01-25 00:00 UT   10 19 04.4   +28 54 02    10.566   11.451  152.9    2.2   255   19.8 
2026-01-26 00:00 UT   10 18 33.9   +28 57 13    10.563   11.455  153.7    2.2   253   19.8 
2026-01-27 00:00 UT   10 18 03.1   +29 00 23    10.561   11.458  154.6    2.1   252   19.8 
2026-01-28 00:00 UT   10 17 32.1   +29 03 32    10.559   11.462  155.4    2.1   250   19.8 
2026-01-29 00:00 UT   10 17 00.9   +29 06 39    10.557   11.465  156.2    2.0   248   19.8 
2026-01-30 00:00 UT   10 16 29.5   +29 09 45    10.555   11.469  157.0    1.9   245   19.8 

    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.