C/2020 F5 (MASTER)
ephemeris date magn radius delta ra dec elong phase PA
Perihelion16 Mar 202115.24.325 AU4.994 AU 22h37m-42°42'43.4°9.1°204°
Nearest approach22 Aug 202114.74.515 AU3.586 AU 23h13m-32°48'153.6°5.7°319°
Today22 Oct 202521.312.458 AU11.755 AU 00h41m+56°05'133.2°3.3°158°
C/2020 F5 (MASTER)- 2025-10-22
astro.vanbuitenen.nl


 
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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 5.9 + 5 log[∆] + 9.2 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 F5 (MASTER) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.9734780
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 4.3254700
    i (Inclination)                 : 52.23830
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 350.55400
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 310.59500
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 315.00437
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : -36.89123
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2459289.50260
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 2082.77

    Epoch                           : 2025 Oct 21
    Reference                       : MPEC 2024-UQ8

    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
2025-10-21 00:00 UT   00 42 03.6   +56 07 25    11.750   12.450  133.0    3.4   160   21.3 
2025-10-22 00:00 UT   00 41 35.3   +56 06 03    11.754   12.456  133.1    3.3   158   21.3 
2025-10-22 09:13 UT   00 41 24.5   +56 05 31    11.755   12.458  133.2    3.3   158   21.3 
2025-10-23 00:00 UT   00 41 07.2   +56 04 37    11.758   12.461  133.3    3.3   157   21.3 
2025-10-24 00:00 UT   00 40 39.4   +56 03 07    11.762   12.467  133.4    3.3   155   21.3 
2025-10-25 00:00 UT   00 40 11.9   +56 01 34    11.766   12.472  133.5    3.3   154   21.3 
2025-10-26 00:00 UT   00 39 44.6   +55 59 57    11.771   12.477  133.6    3.3   152   21.3 
2025-10-27 00:00 UT   00 39 17.5   +55 58 16    11.776   12.483  133.6    3.3   151   21.3 
2025-10-28 00:00 UT   00 38 50.8   +55 56 31    11.781   12.488  133.7    3.3   149   21.3 
2025-10-29 00:00 UT   00 38 24.4   +55 54 43    11.786   12.494  133.7    3.3   147   21.3 
2025-10-30 00:00 UT   00 37 58.2   +55 52 52    11.792   12.499  133.7    3.3   146   21.3 
2025-10-31 00:00 UT   00 37 32.4   +55 50 57    11.797   12.504  133.7    3.3   144   21.3 
2025-11-01 00:00 UT   00 37 07.0   +55 48 59    11.803   12.510  133.7    3.3   143   21.3 



    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.