C/2020 X3 (SOHO) |
ephemeris |
date |
magn |
radius |
delta |
ra |
dec |
elong |
phase |
PA |
Perihelion | 14 Dec 2020 | -0.8 | 0.005 AU | 0.988 AU | 17h30m | -23°07' | 0.2° | 51.1° | 55° |
Nearest approach | 6 Jan 2021 | 15.9 | 0.873 AU | 0.551 AU | 17h14m | -83°40' | 62.0° | 84.1° | 210° |
Today | 2 Jul 2025 | 33.2 | 15.420 AU | 16.262 AU | 06h50m | -09°52' | 33.0° | 2.1° | 177° |
This comet is a sungrazer.
Although it may become very bright at perihelion, this will only be for a very short period very close to the sun.
C/2020 X3 (SOHO)- 2025-07-02
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 X3 (SOHO) are:
e (Eccentricity) : 1.0000000
q (Perihelion distance) : 0.0050117
i (Inclination) : 143.93683
Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 357.16186
ω (Argument of perihelion) : 77.35832
L (Longitude of perihelion) : 282.66910
B (Latitude of perihelion) : 35.05805
T (Time of perihelion passage) : 2459198.44587
Epoch : 2020 Dec 17
Reference : MPEC 2020-Y19
Classification(s): : Nearly isotropic; New (a > 10000 AU); Sungrazer; Kreutz
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 (15.00 + 5 log[∆] + 10.00 log[r]), whereas the red curve is being recalculated every 6 hours based on the available COBS/MPC observations (currently 17.64 + 5 log[∆] + 8.00 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
2025-07-02 00:00 UT 06 50 19.9 -09 52 44 16.262 15.419 33.0 2.1 177 33.2
2025-07-02 02:00 UT 06 50 21.1 -09 52 46 16.262 15.420 33.0 2.1 177 33.2
2025-07-03 00:00 UT 06 50 34.3 -09 53 01 16.269 15.426 32.9 2.1 179 33.2
2025-07-04 00:00 UT 06 50 48.6 -09 53 19 16.276 15.432 32.8 2.0 180 33.2
2025-07-05 00:00 UT 06 51 03.0 -09 53 39 16.283 15.438 32.7 2.0 182 33.2
2025-07-06 00:00 UT 06 51 17.3 -09 54 01 16.289 15.444 32.7 2.0 184 33.2
2025-07-07 00:00 UT 06 51 31.6 -09 54 25 16.296 15.450 32.7 2.0 185 33.2
2025-07-08 00:00 UT 06 51 45.9 -09 54 51 16.302 15.456 32.7 2.0 187 33.2
2025-07-09 00:00 UT 06 52 00.1 -09 55 19 16.308 15.463 32.7 2.0 189 33.2
2025-07-10 00:00 UT 06 52 14.4 -09 55 48 16.313 15.469 32.7 2.0 190 33.2
2025-07-11 00:00 UT 06 52 28.6 -09 56 20 16.319 15.475 32.8 2.0 192 33.2
2025-07-12 00:00 UT 06 52 42.7 -09 56 53 16.324 15.481 32.9 2.0 194 33.2
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.