|
C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) |
| ephemeris |
date |
magn |
radius |
delta |
ra |
dec |
elong |
phase |
PA |
| Perihelion | 5 Jul 2020 | 1.7 | 0.293 AU | 1.148 AU | 06h05m | +30°19' | 13.9° | 56.6° | 300° |
| Nearest approach | 24 Jul 2020 | 3.6 | 0.620 AU | 0.697 AU | 10h28m | +43°53' | 36.9° | 100.7° | 60° |
| Today | 15 Oct 2025 | 25.3 | 16.685 AU | 17.558 AU | 14h28m | -31°49' | 28.0° | 1.6° | 142° |
C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE)- 2025-10-15
astro.vanbuitenen.nl
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 6.7 + 5 log[∆] + 10.1 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 F3 (NEOWISE) are:
e (Eccentricity) : 0.9992790
q (Perihelion distance) : 0.2930090
i (Inclination) : 129.08930
Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 61.06390
ω (Argument of perihelion) : 37.32920
L (Longitude of perihelion) : 35.38361
B (Latitude of perihelion) : 28.07722
T (Time of perihelion passage) : 2459035.63090
P (Orbital period in years) : 8192.54
Epoch : 2025 Oct 14
Reference : MPEC 2021-O56
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
2025-10-15 00:00 UT 14 28 43.6 -31 48 42 17.552 16.682 28.4 1.6 142 25.3
2025-10-15 11:41 UT 14 28 50.4 -31 49 05 17.558 16.685 28.0 1.6 142 25.3
2025-10-16 00:00 UT 14 28 57.6 -31 49 29 17.564 16.688 27.6 1.6 143 25.3
2025-10-17 00:00 UT 14 29 11.5 -31 50 18 17.576 16.694 26.9 1.5 144 25.3
2025-10-18 00:00 UT 14 29 25.6 -31 51 08 17.588 16.700 26.2 1.5 146 25.3
2025-10-19 00:00 UT 14 29 39.6 -31 51 59 17.599 16.705 25.4 1.5 147 25.3
2025-10-20 00:00 UT 14 29 53.8 -31 52 51 17.610 16.711 24.7 1.4 148 25.3
2025-10-21 00:00 UT 14 30 08.0 -31 53 45 17.621 16.717 24.0 1.4 150 25.3
2025-10-22 00:00 UT 14 30 22.2 -31 54 39 17.631 16.723 23.4 1.4 151 25.3
2025-10-23 00:00 UT 14 30 36.5 -31 55 35 17.642 16.729 22.7 1.3 153 25.3
2025-10-24 00:00 UT 14 30 50.8 -31 56 31 17.652 16.735 22.1 1.3 155 25.3
2025-10-25 00:00 UT 14 31 05.1 -31 57 28 17.662 16.740 21.4 1.2 157 25.3
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.
