(80) Sappho
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase
Today	11 Apr 2026	13.1	2.439 AU	2.536 AU	06h14m	+15°13'	72.9°	23.1°
Opposition	31 Mar 2027	11.7	2.740 AU	1.745 AU	12h29m	-10°14'	173.5°	2.4°

The interactive orbit chart above shows the body'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 Sappho are:

            e (Eccentricity)                : 0.1996712
            a (Semimajor axis)              : 2.2962820
            i (Inclination)                 : 8.67610
            Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 218.63849
            ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 139.69332
            M (Mean anomaly)                : 57.25859
            Epoch                           : 2025 Nov 21

            L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 178.65679
            B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 5.59987
            P (Orbital period in years)     : 3.48            
        

The light curve chart below shows the estimated development of the minor planet's magnitude.

The all-sky chart below shows the path of the minor planet over the same period as the light curve. The current position is marked yellow.

The following chart shows the path of the minor planet in the next few days. The field of view is optimized for (~10x50) binoculars and finderscopes.

Ephemerides:

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-04-11 00:00 UT   06 14 25.3   +15 13 41     2.536    2.439   72.9   23.1    94   13.1 
2026-04-11 06:41 UT   06 14 49.2   +15 14 03     2.540    2.439   72.8   23.1    94   13.1 
2026-04-12 00:00 UT   06 15 51.1   +15 15 01     2.550    2.441   72.3   23.0    94   13.1 
2026-04-13 00:00 UT   06 17 17.5   +15 16 16     2.564    2.443   71.7   22.9    94   13.1 
2026-04-14 00:00 UT   06 18 44.4   +15 17 27     2.578    2.445   71.1   22.8    95   13.1 
2026-04-15 00:00 UT   06 20 11.8   +15 18 34     2.592    2.447   70.4   22.7    95   13.2 
2026-04-16 00:00 UT   06 21 39.7   +15 19 36     2.606    2.449   69.8   22.6    95   13.2 
2026-04-17 00:00 UT   06 23 08.0   +15 20 33     2.620    2.451   69.2   22.5    95   13.2 
2026-04-18 00:00 UT   06 24 36.9   +15 21 25     2.634    2.453   68.6   22.4    96   13.2 
2026-04-19 00:00 UT   06 26 06.2   +15 22 13     2.648    2.455   68.0   22.3    96   13.2 
2026-04-20 00:00 UT   06 27 36.0   +15 22 56     2.661    2.457   67.4   22.2    96   13.2 
2026-04-21 00:00 UT   06 29 06.2   +15 23 35     2.675    2.459   66.8   22.1    96   13.2 
2026-04-22 00:00 UT   06 30 36.8   +15 24 08     2.688    2.461   66.2   21.9    97   13.2 
2026-04-23 00:00 UT   06 32 07.8   +15 24 37     2.702    2.463   65.6   21.8    97   13.2 
2026-04-24 00:00 UT   06 33 39.2   +15 25 01     2.715    2.464   65.0   21.7    97   13.2 
2026-04-25 00:00 UT   06 35 11.0   +15 25 20     2.729    2.466   64.4   21.6    97   13.2 
2026-04-26 00:00 UT   06 36 43.2   +15 25 34     2.742    2.468   63.8   21.4    98   13.3 
2026-04-27 00:00 UT   06 38 15.8   +15 25 43     2.755    2.470   63.2   21.3    98   13.3 
2026-04-28 00:00 UT   06 39 48.6   +15 25 48     2.769    2.472   62.6   21.2    98   13.3 
2026-04-29 00:00 UT   06 41 21.9   +15 25 47     2.782    2.474   62.0   21.1    98   13.3 
2026-04-30 00:00 UT   06 42 55.4   +15 25 42     2.795    2.476   61.4   20.9    98   13.3 
2026-05-01 00:00 UT   06 44 29.3   +15 25 31     2.808    2.478   60.8   20.8    99   13.3 
2026-05-02 00:00 UT   06 46 03.5   +15 25 15     2.821    2.480   60.2   20.7    99   13.3 
2026-05-03 00:00 UT   06 47 38.0   +15 24 55     2.834    2.482   59.6   20.5    99   13.3 
2026-05-04 00:00 UT   06 49 12.8   +15 24 29     2.847    2.484   59.1   20.4    99   13.3 

    Terminology:
            
    delta:  distance between minor planet and earth in AU
    radius: distance between minor planet 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-minor planet)    
    phase:  phase angle in degrees (angle sun-minor planet-earth)        
    AU:     Astronomical Unit (mean distance between earth and sun: 149597870.7 km
    

Orbital elements provided by 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.