C/2021 A1 (Leonard) - DISINTEGRATED
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Nearest approach	13 Dec 2021	2.9	0.774 AU	0.233 AU	17h14m	-00°36'	22.6°	150.8°	356°
Perihelion	4 Jan 2022	5.9	0.614 AU	0.925 AU	21h40m	-35°20'	37.4°	76.4°	98°
Disintegration	1 Mar 2022	11.0	1.277 AU	1.990 AU	21h24m	-34°50'	32.9°	24.9°	219°
Today	22 Jan 2026	-	13.705 AU	14.201 AU	16h23m	-06°54'	58.0°	3.5°	289°

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 8.4 + 5 log[∆] + 11.0 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/2021 A1 (Leonard) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 1.0002770
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 0.6144200
    i (Inclination)                 : 132.73470
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 255.90160
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 225.11480
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 221.63384
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : -31.35990
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2459583.59800

    Epoch                           : 2026 Jan 21
    Reference                       : MPC181179

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

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-01-21 00:00 UT   16 22 57.5   -06 55 44    14.211   13.696   56.7    3.4   289   26.6 
2026-01-22 00:00 UT   16 23 06.5   -06 54 58    14.203   13.703   57.7    3.5   289   26.6 
2026-01-22 08:04 UT   16 23 09.4   -06 54 43    14.201   13.705   58.0    3.5   289   26.6 
2026-01-23 00:00 UT   16 23 15.2   -06 54 11    14.196   13.709   58.6    3.5   289   26.6 
2026-01-24 00:00 UT   16 23 23.7   -06 53 22    14.188   13.716   59.6    3.5   288   26.6 
2026-01-25 00:00 UT   16 23 31.9   -06 52 33    14.180   13.722   60.5    3.6   288   26.6 
2026-01-26 00:00 UT   16 23 39.9   -06 51 41    14.171   13.729   61.4    3.6   288   26.6 
2026-01-27 00:00 UT   16 23 47.7   -06 50 49    14.163   13.735   62.4    3.6   287   26.6 
2026-01-28 00:00 UT   16 23 55.2   -06 49 55    14.154   13.741   63.3    3.7   287   26.6 
2026-01-29 00:00 UT   16 24 02.5   -06 49 00    14.146   13.748   64.3    3.7   287   26.6 
2026-01-30 00:00 UT   16 24 09.5   -06 48 04    14.137   13.754   65.2    3.7   287   26.6 
2026-01-31 00:00 UT   16 24 16.3   -06 47 07    14.128   13.761   66.2    3.8   286   26.6 
2026-02-01 00:00 UT   16 24 22.8   -06 46 08    14.119   13.767   67.2    3.8   286   26.6 

    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.