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C/2021 S4 (Tsuchinshan)
ephemeris date magn radius delta ra dec elong phase PA
Nearest approach8 Dec 202317.66.696 AU5.758 AU 04h46m+41°47'160.7°2.8°172°
Perihelion3 Jan 202417.66.693 AU5.860 AU 04h35m+41°24'145.5°4.8°112°
Today17 Nov 202519.07.992 AU7.775 AU 09h30m+30°52'99.1°7.0°287°
C/2021 S4 (Tsuchinshan)- 2025-11-17
astro.vanbuitenen.nl


 
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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 5.5 + 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/2021 S4 (Tsuchinshan) are: 

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.9565290
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 6.6932730
    i (Inclination)                 : 17.48120
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 5.44170
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 73.07720
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 77.74952
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 16.70148
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2460313.46050
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 1910.55

    Epoch                           : 2025 Nov 16
    Reference                       : MPC184409

    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
2025-11-16 00:00 UT   09 30 47.8   +30 51 54     7.787    7.988   98.2    7.0   287   19.0 
2025-11-17 00:00 UT   09 30 58.1   +30 52 32     7.775    7.992   99.1    7.0   287   19.0 
2025-11-17 01:19 UT   09 30 58.6   +30 52 34     7.775    7.992   99.1    7.0   287   19.0 
2025-11-18 00:00 UT   09 31 07.8   +30 53 12     7.763    7.995  100.0    7.0   286   19.0 
2025-11-19 00:00 UT   09 31 17.0   +30 53 55     7.751    7.998  101.0    7.0   286   19.0 
2025-11-20 00:00 UT   09 31 25.7   +30 54 40     7.739    8.002  101.9    6.9   286   19.0 
2025-11-21 00:00 UT   09 31 33.7   +30 55 28     7.727    8.005  102.9    6.9   286   19.0 
2025-11-22 00:00 UT   09 31 41.2   +30 56 17     7.715    8.008  103.8    6.9   285   19.0 
2025-11-23 00:00 UT   09 31 48.2   +30 57 09     7.703    8.012  104.8    6.8   285   19.0 
2025-11-24 00:00 UT   09 31 54.5   +30 58 03     7.691    8.015  105.7    6.8   285   19.0 
2025-11-25 00:00 UT   09 32 00.3   +30 58 59     7.679    8.019  106.7    6.8   284   19.0 
2025-11-26 00:00 UT   09 32 05.6   +30 59 58     7.668    8.022  107.6    6.7   284   19.0 
2025-11-27 00:00 UT   09 32 10.2   +31 00 58     7.656    8.026  108.6    6.7   284   19.0 




    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.

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