C/2020 R4 (ATLAS) |
ephemeris |
date |
magn |
radius |
delta |
ra |
dec |
elong |
phase |
PA |
Today | 20 Jan 2021 | 14.0 | 1.230 AU | 2.165 AU | 21h04m | -16°53' | 13.5° | 10.7° | 74° |
Perihelion | 1 Mar 2021 | 12.7 | 1.028 AU | 1.711 AU | 20h39m | -11°28' | 32.8° | 31.4° | 266° |
Nearest approach | 23 Apr 2021 | 11.0 | 1.343 AU | 0.463 AU | 16h14m | +28°26' | 128.2° | 36.0° | 222° |
C/2020 R4 (ATLAS)- 2021-01-20
astro.vanbuitenen.nl
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 R4 (ATLAS), as provided by the minor planet center, are:
e (eccentricity) : 0.9893090
q (perihelion distance) : 1.0284190
i (inclination) : 164.46280
Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 323.27560
ω (Argument of perihelion) : 46.72620
L (Longitude of perihelion) : 277.61491
B (Latitude of perihelion) : 11.24636
T (Time of perihelion passage) : 2459275.44210
P (Orbital period in years) : 943.47
Epoch : 2021 Jan 19
Reference : MPEC 2021-AJ0
Family/Group: : Nearly isotropic
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 (13.50 + 5 log[∆] + 10.00 log[r]), whereas the red curve is being recalculated every 6 hours based on the available COBS/MPC observations (currently 11.43 + 5 log[∆] + 10.00 log[r]).
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.