C/2020 M5 (ATLAS)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Perihelion	19 Aug 2021	15.0	3.002 AU	3.628 AU	12h29m	+43°16'	45.2°	13.8°	59°
Nearest approach	2 Mar 2022	15.0	3.558 AU	2.600 AU	12h02m	+10°26'	162.6°	4.8°	260°
Today	19 Jun 2026	24.5	13.696 AU	13.821 AU	08h04m	-51°56'	80.8°	4.2°	149°

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 7.4 + 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 M5 (ATLAS) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 1.0000350
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 3.0019980
    i (Inclination)                 : 93.15330
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 351.96930
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 126.26030
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 356.25804
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 53.62160
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2459445.94190

    Epoch                           : 2026 Jun 19
    Reference                       : MPC194168

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

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-06-18 00:00 UT   08 04 09.1   -51 58 53    13.801   13.686   81.3    4.2   148   24.5 
2026-06-19 00:00 UT   08 04 28.0   -51 57 29    13.813   13.691   81.0    4.2   149   24.5 
2026-06-19 18:46 UT   08 04 43.0   -51 56 27    13.821   13.696   80.8    4.2   149   24.5 
2026-06-20 00:00 UT   08 04 47.1   -51 56 09    13.824   13.697   80.7    4.2   150   24.5 
2026-06-21 00:00 UT   08 05 06.5   -51 54 53    13.835   13.703   80.4    4.2   150   24.5 
2026-06-22 00:00 UT   08 05 26.0   -51 53 41    13.846   13.709   80.1    4.2   151   24.5 
2026-06-23 00:00 UT   08 05 45.6   -51 52 31    13.858   13.715   79.8    4.2   152   24.5 
2026-06-24 00:00 UT   08 06 05.4   -51 51 26    13.869   13.720   79.5    4.2   153   24.5 
2026-06-25 00:00 UT   08 06 25.4   -51 50 24    13.880   13.726   79.2    4.2   154   24.5 
2026-06-26 00:00 UT   08 06 45.5   -51 49 26    13.891   13.732   78.9    4.2   155   24.5 
2026-06-27 00:00 UT   08 07 05.8   -51 48 31    13.902   13.738   78.6    4.2   155   24.5 
2026-06-28 00:00 UT   08 07 26.2   -51 47 41    13.913   13.744   78.3    4.2   156   24.5 
2026-06-29 00:00 UT   08 07 46.7   -51 46 53    13.924   13.749   78.0    4.1   157   24.5 

    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.