C/2020 F8 (SWAN) - DISINTEGRATED
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Disintegration	2 May 2020	5.2	0.740 AU	0.697 AU	00h04m	-13°00'	47.3°	89.0°	234°
Nearest approach	11 May 2020	5.7	0.573 AU	0.562 AU	01h19m	+16°54'	27.5°	125.6°	263°
Perihelion	26 May 2020	7.7	0.431 AU	0.908 AU	04h23m	+46°17'	25.2°	91.1°	6°
Today	31 Oct 2024	-	14.753 AU	14.108 AU	04h31m	-25°51'	129.0°	3.0°	318°

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.)

The orbital elements of C/2020 F8 (SWAN) are:

            e (Eccentricity)                : 1.0001010
            q (Perihelion distance)         : 0.4311220
            i (Inclination)                 : 110.55440
            Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 259.80010
            ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 68.08050
            L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 218.69469
            B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 60.30221
            T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2458995.91070

            Epoch                           : 2024 Oct 29
            Reference                       : MPEC 2023-J29

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

The light curve chart below shows the estimated development of the comet's magnitude. Blue and black dots are visual and photometric CCD observations respectively from COBS or the MPC. The gray curve is based on the absolute magnitude and slope parameter as calculated from the original MPEC, or the latest values provided by the MPC (10.00 + 5 log[∆] + 10.00 log[r]), whereas the red curve is being recalculated every 6 hours based on the available COBS/MPC observations (currently 7.65 + 5 log[∆] + 12.41 log[r]). The additional green curve shows the effect of forward scattering, occurring when the comet is between the earth and the sun, for a gas-to-dust light ratio δ90 of 0.30. (See Marcus 2007)

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.
A more printer-friendly version of the same chart can be found further down this page as well.

The following chart shows the current location of the comet in a smaller, upside-down telescopic field of view.

A printable version of the short-term path of the comet in a field of view that is optimized for (~10x50) binoculars and finderscopes.

Ephemerides:

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2024-10-31 00:00 UT   04 31 54.5   -25 51 15    14.108   14.753  129.0    3.0   318   27.9 
2024-10-31 01:08 UT   04 31 53.8   -25 51 21    14.108   14.753  129.0    3.0   318   27.9 
2024-11-01 00:00 UT   04 31 38.0   -25 53 24    14.110   14.759  129.3    3.0   319   27.9 
2024-11-02 00:00 UT   04 31 21.3   -25 55 30    14.112   14.766  129.7    3.0   320   27.9 
2024-11-03 00:00 UT   04 31 04.4   -25 57 33    14.115   14.772  130.0    3.0   322   27.9 
2024-11-04 00:00 UT   04 30 47.4   -25 59 34    14.117   14.778  130.3    2.9   323   27.9 
2024-11-05 00:00 UT   04 30 30.2   -26 01 32    14.120   14.784  130.6    2.9   324   27.9 
2024-11-06 00:00 UT   04 30 12.9   -26 03 26    14.123   14.791  130.8    2.9   326   27.9 
2024-11-07 00:00 UT   04 29 55.4   -26 05 18    14.126   14.797  131.1    2.9   327   27.9 
2024-11-08 00:00 UT   04 29 37.8   -26 07 07    14.130   14.803  131.3    2.9   329   27.9 
2024-11-09 00:00 UT   04 29 20.1   -26 08 53    14.134   14.809  131.5    2.9   330   27.9 
2024-11-10 00:00 UT   04 29 02.2   -26 10 36    14.138   14.816  131.7    2.9   331   27.9 

    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.