C/2020 F8 (SWAN) - DISINTEGRATED
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Disintegration	2 May 2020	5.2	0.716 AU	0.677 AU	00h05m	-09°37'	45.2°	92.6°	237°
Nearest approach	10 May 2020	5.5	0.572 AU	0.571 AU	01h12m	+17°18'	28.0°	124.1°	265°
Perihelion	25 May 2020	7.3	0.435 AU	0.906 AU	04h15m	+46°20'	25.4°	91.1°	4°
Today	3 Nov 2026	-	19.019 AU	18.378 AU	04h26m	-27°49'	129.1°	2.3°	324°

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 7.8 + 5 log[∆] + 12.2 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 F8 (SWAN) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.9997760
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 0.4351460
    i (Inclination)                 : 110.60310
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 259.85970
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 68.18590
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 218.53886
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 60.34435
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2458994.56190
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 85621.03

    Epoch                           : 2026 May 29
    Reference                       : MPC194166

    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
2026-11-02 00:00 UT   04 26 28.8   -27 47 28    18.375   19.012  128.7    2.3   322   29.6 
2026-11-03 00:00 UT   04 26 15.7   -27 49 02    18.377   19.018  129.0    2.3   323   29.6 
2026-11-03 07:03 UT   04 26 11.8   -27 49 29    18.378   19.019  129.1    2.3   324   29.6 
2026-11-04 00:00 UT   04 26 02.4   -27 50 34    18.379   19.023  129.3    2.3   325   29.6 
2026-11-05 00:00 UT   04 25 49.1   -27 52 03    18.382   19.029  129.5    2.3   326   29.6 
2026-11-06 00:00 UT   04 25 35.6   -27 53 30    18.384   19.034  129.7    2.3   327   29.6 
2026-11-07 00:00 UT   04 25 22.0   -27 54 55    18.387   19.040  130.0    2.3   329   29.7 
2026-11-08 00:00 UT   04 25 08.3   -27 56 17    18.391   19.045  130.1    2.3   330   29.7 
2026-11-09 00:00 UT   04 24 54.5   -27 57 38    18.394   19.051  130.3    2.3   331   29.7 
2026-11-10 00:00 UT   04 24 40.7   -27 58 55    18.398   19.056  130.5    2.3   333   29.7 
2026-11-11 00:00 UT   04 24 26.7   -28 00 11    18.401   19.062  130.6    2.3   334   29.7 
2026-11-12 00:00 UT   04 24 12.6   -28 01 23    18.405   19.067  130.8    2.3   335   29.7 
2026-11-13 00:00 UT   04 23 58.5   -28 02 34    18.409   19.073  130.9    2.2   337   29.7 

    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.