C/2020 K4 (PANSTARRS)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Perihelion	7 Mar 2020	20.9	1.758 AU	2.428 AU	22h07m	-40°05'	38.2°	20.4°	207°
Nearest approach	7 Jun 2020	20.0	2.097 AU	1.105 AU	18h15m	-26°20'	163.0°	8.1°	278°
Today	18 Oct 2026	35.2	17.311 AU	17.773 AU	13h05m	+50°55'	60.9°	2.9°	352°

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 16.6 + 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 K4 (PANSTARRS) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.9613390
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 1.7583650
    i (Inclination)                 : 125.93780
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 264.25960
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 310.21240
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 299.02819
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : -38.19194
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2458916.43080
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 306.73

    Epoch                           : 2026 May 29
    Reference                       : MPC194167

    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
2026-10-17 00:00 UT   13 05 22.7   +50 55 19    17.777   17.302   60.1    2.9   354   35.2 
2026-10-18 00:00 UT   13 05 40.2   +50 55 14    17.775   17.307   60.6    2.9   353   35.2 
2026-10-18 17:38 UT   13 05 53.0   +50 55 11    17.773   17.311   60.9    2.9   352   35.2 
2026-10-19 00:00 UT   13 05 57.6   +50 55 11    17.773   17.312   61.0    2.9   352   35.2 
2026-10-20 00:00 UT   13 06 15.0   +50 55 11    17.771   17.317   61.4    2.9   351   35.2 
2026-10-21 00:00 UT   13 06 32.4   +50 55 13    17.769   17.322   61.9    2.9   350   35.2 
2026-10-22 00:00 UT   13 06 49.6   +50 55 19    17.766   17.327   62.3    2.9   349   35.2 
2026-10-23 00:00 UT   13 07 06.9   +50 55 27    17.764   17.332   62.8    2.9   349   35.2 
2026-10-24 00:00 UT   13 07 24.1   +50 55 39    17.761   17.337   63.2    2.9   348   35.2 
2026-10-25 00:00 UT   13 07 41.2   +50 55 53    17.759   17.342   63.7    2.9   347   35.2 
2026-10-26 00:00 UT   13 07 58.2   +50 56 10    17.756   17.347   64.2    3.0   346   35.2 
2026-10-27 00:00 UT   13 08 15.2   +50 56 30    17.753   17.352   64.7    3.0   345   35.2 
2026-10-28 00:00 UT   13 08 32.1   +50 56 53    17.750   17.356   65.2    3.0   344   35.2 

    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.