C/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Nearest approach	17 Jan 2023	9.5	1.784 AU	1.611 AU	17h31m	+56°38'	83.1°	33.2°	327°
Perihelion	18 Feb 2023	9.7	1.734 AU	1.867 AU	21h38m	+54°47'	66.8°	31.6°	353°
Today	9 Aug 2026	22.7	11.413 AU	10.699 AU	00h07m	-47°23'	132.8°	3.7°	297°

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 5.6 + 5 log[∆] + 11.3 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/2022 A2 (PANSTARRS) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 1.0002070
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 1.7343940
    i (Inclination)                 : 108.21380
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 171.64180
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 88.36980
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 86.84444
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 71.71586
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2459993.86300

    Epoch                           : 2026 Aug 09
    Reference                       : MPC194178

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

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-08-08 00:00 UT   00 08 09.8   -47 14 49    10.695   11.401  132.2    3.8   295   22.7 
2026-08-09 00:00 UT   00 07 49.6   -47 19 34    10.697   11.408  132.5    3.8   296   22.7 
2026-08-09 18:22 UT   00 07 33.8   -47 23 11    10.699   11.413  132.8    3.7   297   22.7 
2026-08-10 00:00 UT   00 07 29.0   -47 24 18    10.700   11.414  132.9    3.7   298   22.7 
2026-08-11 00:00 UT   00 07 07.9   -47 28 59    10.702   11.421  133.3    3.7   299   22.7 
2026-08-12 00:00 UT   00 06 46.4   -47 33 37    10.705   11.428  133.6    3.7   300   22.7 
2026-08-13 00:00 UT   00 06 24.6   -47 38 13    10.708   11.434  133.9    3.7   302   22.7 
2026-08-14 00:00 UT   00 06 02.3   -47 42 47    10.711   11.441  134.2    3.6   303   22.7 
2026-08-15 00:00 UT   00 05 39.7   -47 47 18    10.715   11.448  134.5    3.6   305   22.8 
2026-08-16 00:00 UT   00 05 16.7   -47 51 46    10.718   11.454  134.7    3.6   306   22.8 
2026-08-17 00:00 UT   00 04 53.3   -47 56 12    10.722   11.461  135.0    3.6   308   22.8 
2026-08-18 00:00 UT   00 04 29.6   -48 00 34    10.726   11.467  135.2    3.6   309   22.8 
2026-08-19 00:00 UT   00 04 05.5   -48 04 53    10.731   11.474  135.4    3.5   311   22.8 

    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.