C/2013 US10 (Catalina)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Perihelion	12 Nov 2015	6.3	0.815 AU	1.752 AU	14h14m	-18°28'	12.5°	15.2°	268°
Nearest approach	15 Jan 2016	6.2	1.407 AU	0.748 AU	13h40m	+55°23'	107.9°	41.7°	282°
Today	7 Dec 2025	23.1	25.441 AU	24.673 AU	02h04m	+34°08'	140.4°	1.4°	95°

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 5.8 + 5 log[∆] + 7.4 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/2013 US10 (Catalina) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 1.0001420
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 0.8146250
    i (Inclination)                 : 148.90530
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 186.21290
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 340.25740
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 203.29633
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : -10.04698
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2457338.73890

    Epoch                           : 2025 Dec 07
    Reference                       : MPC110080

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

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2025-12-06 00:00 UT   02 04 30.2   +34 10 37    24.646   25.431  142.1    1.4    97   23.1 
2025-12-07 00:00 UT   02 04 21.6   +34 09 21    24.659   25.436  141.3    1.4    96   23.1 
2025-12-07 23:32 UT   02 04 13.3   +34 08 07    24.673   25.441  140.4    1.4    95   23.1 
2025-12-08 00:00 UT   02 04 13.1   +34 08 06    24.674   25.441  140.4    1.4    95   23.1 
2025-12-09 00:00 UT   02 04 04.8   +34 06 50    24.688   25.446  139.5    1.4    94   23.1 
2025-12-10 00:00 UT   02 03 56.6   +34 05 34    24.703   25.450  138.6    1.5    93   23.1 
2025-12-11 00:00 UT   02 03 48.5   +34 04 18    24.717   25.455  137.7    1.5    92   23.1 
2025-12-12 00:00 UT   02 03 40.6   +34 03 03    24.732   25.460  136.8    1.5    92   23.1 
2025-12-13 00:00 UT   02 03 32.9   +34 01 47    24.748   25.465  135.9    1.5    91   23.1 
2025-12-14 00:00 UT   02 03 25.3   +34 00 31    24.763   25.469  135.0    1.6    90   23.1 
2025-12-15 00:00 UT   02 03 17.9   +33 59 15    24.779   25.474  134.1    1.6    89   23.1 
2025-12-16 00:00 UT   02 03 10.6   +33 57 60    24.795   25.479  133.1    1.6    89   23.1 
2025-12-17 00:00 UT   02 03 03.5   +33 56 44    24.811   25.484  132.2    1.6    88   23.1 

    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.