C/2012 K1 (PANSTARRS)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Perihelion	23 Aug 2014	6.9	1.059 AU	1.981 AU	08h58m	+09°28'	17.3°	16.5°	262°
Nearest approach	29 Oct 2014	6.7	1.512 AU	0.971 AU	06h02m	-47°29'	100.6°	40.2°	304°
Today	26 Feb 2026	25.5	27.632 AU	28.563 AU	21h21m	-15°06'	19.3°	0.7°	253°

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 5.2 + 5 log[∆] + 9.1 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/2012 K1 (PANSTARRS) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.9998760
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 1.0593060
    i (Inclination)                 : 142.59950
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 317.76230
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 203.19870
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 298.96049
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : -13.84292
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2456893.03400
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 789586.33

    Epoch                           : 2026 Feb 25
    Reference                       : MPC103843

    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
2026-02-25 00:00 UT   21 20 53.5   -15 06 50    28.564   27.626   18.1    0.6   253   25.5 
2026-02-26 00:00 UT   21 21 00.9   -15 06 11    28.563   27.630   19.1    0.7   253   25.5 
2026-02-26 05:38 UT   21 21 02.6   -15 06 02    28.563   27.632   19.3    0.7   253   25.5 
2026-02-27 00:00 UT   21 21 08.2   -15 05 33    28.562   27.635   20.1    0.7   253   25.5 
2026-02-28 00:00 UT   21 21 15.5   -15 04 54    28.561   27.640   21.0    0.7   253   25.5 
2026-03-01 00:00 UT   21 21 22.8   -15 04 16    28.559   27.644   22.0    0.8   253   25.5 
2026-03-02 00:00 UT   21 21 30.0   -15 03 38    28.557   27.649   23.0    0.8   253   25.5 
2026-03-03 00:00 UT   21 21 37.1   -15 03 00    28.555   27.653   24.0    0.8   253   25.5 
2026-03-04 00:00 UT   21 21 44.2   -15 02 23    28.553   27.658   24.9    0.9   253   25.5 
2026-03-05 00:00 UT   21 21 51.2   -15 01 45    28.550   27.662   25.9    0.9   253   25.5 
2026-03-06 00:00 UT   21 21 58.2   -15 01 08    28.547   27.667   26.9    0.9   253   25.5 
2026-03-07 00:00 UT   21 22 05.1   -15 00 32    28.544   27.671   27.9    1.0   253   25.5 
2026-03-08 00:00 UT   21 22 11.9   -14 59 55    28.540   27.676   28.8    1.0   253   25.5 

    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.