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P/2023 V6 (PANSTARRS)
ephemeris date magn radius delta ra dec elong phase PA
Nearest approach8 Oct 202220.54.354 AU3.355 AU 00h59m+05°43'179.1°0.2°289°
Perihelion22 Nov 202220.74.352 AU3.636 AU 00h42m+03°32'131.3°9.8°66°
Today13 Mar 202622.35.558 AU4.773 AU 08h51m+13°52'138.7°6.8°102°
P/2023 V6 (PANSTARRS)- 2026-03-13
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. The light curve is based on the absolute magnitude and slope parameter as calculated from an MPEC, or the latest values provided by the minor planet center. (11.5 + 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 P/2023 V6 (PANSTARRS) are: 

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.1753160
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 4.3515580
    i (Inclination)                 : 3.98060
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 189.43130
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 191.57930
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 200.98342
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : -0.79839
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2459905.98980
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 12.12

    Epoch                           : 2026 Mar 12
    Reference                       : MPEC 2026-E44

    Classification(s):              : Ecliptic; Jupiter family
    Tisserand (Jupiter)             : 2.964

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-03-12 00:00 UT   08 51 43.6   +13 49 59     4.755    5.556  140.3    6.6   101   22.3 
2026-03-13 00:00 UT   08 51 26.2   +13 51 53     4.767    5.558  139.2    6.7   102   22.3 
2026-03-13 13:20 UT   08 51 16.9   +13 52 56     4.773    5.558  138.7    6.8   102   22.3 
2026-03-14 00:00 UT   08 51 09.5   +13 53 45     4.778    5.559  138.2    6.8   102   22.3 
2026-03-15 00:00 UT   08 50 53.4   +13 55 35     4.790    5.560  137.1    7.0   102   22.4 
2026-03-16 00:00 UT   08 50 38.0   +13 57 22     4.802    5.561  136.1    7.1   102   22.4 
2026-03-17 00:00 UT   08 50 23.3   +13 59 07     4.814    5.562  135.0    7.3   102   22.4 
2026-03-18 00:00 UT   08 50 09.2   +14 00 49     4.826    5.563  133.9    7.4   102   22.4 
2026-03-19 00:00 UT   08 49 55.8   +14 02 29     4.839    5.565  132.9    7.5   102   22.4 
2026-03-20 00:00 UT   08 49 43.1   +14 04 07     4.852    5.566  131.8    7.7   102   22.4 
2026-03-21 00:00 UT   08 49 31.1   +14 05 41     4.865    5.567  130.8    7.8   103   22.4 
2026-03-22 00:00 UT   08 49 19.8   +14 07 13     4.878    5.568  129.8    7.9   103   22.4 
2026-03-23 00:00 UT   08 49 09.2   +14 08 43     4.891    5.569  128.7    8.0   103   22.4 




    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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