|
C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) |
| ephemeris |
date |
magn |
radius |
delta |
ra |
dec |
elong |
phase |
PA |
| Perihelion | 24 Apr 2016 | 9.4 | 1.305 AU | 1.918 AU | 23h37m | +00°42' | 39.3° | 29.2° | 250° |
| Nearest approach | 23 Jun 2016 | 7.7 | 1.576 AU | 0.617 AU | 19h55m | -46°11' | 148.5° | 19.7° | 307° |
| Today | 14 Aug 2026 | 28.0 | 25.430 AU | 26.291 AU | 11h08m | -05°59' | 31.1° | 1.2° | 131° |
C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS)- 2026-08-14
astro.vanbuitenen.nl
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 6.8 + 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 C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) are:
e (Eccentricity) : 1.0008950
q (Perihelion distance) : 1.3051120
i (Inclination) : 163.05350
Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 132.03630
ω (Argument of perihelion) : 165.47210
L (Longitude of perihelion) : 145.95842
B (Latitude of perihelion) : 4.19308
T (Time of perihelion passage) : 2457502.85260
Epoch : 2026 Aug 13
Reference : MPC194135
Classification(s): : Nearly isotropic; New (a > 10000 AU)
Ephemerides
Date Time RA (2000) DEC (2000) delta radius elong phase PA magn
2026-08-13 00:00 UT 11 08 06.5 -05 58 46 26.276 25.425 32.1 1.2 131 28.0
2026-08-14 00:00 UT 11 08 13.6 -05 59 16 26.289 25.429 31.3 1.2 131 28.0
2026-08-14 04:07 UT 11 08 14.8 -05 59 21 26.291 25.430 31.1 1.2 131 28.0
2026-08-15 00:00 UT 11 08 20.7 -05 59 47 26.302 25.434 30.4 1.2 132 28.0
2026-08-16 00:00 UT 11 08 27.8 -06 00 19 26.314 25.439 29.5 1.1 133 28.0
2026-08-17 00:00 UT 11 08 35.0 -06 00 51 26.327 25.443 28.7 1.1 133 28.0
2026-08-18 00:00 UT 11 08 42.2 -06 01 24 26.338 25.448 27.8 1.1 134 28.0
2026-08-19 00:00 UT 11 08 49.5 -06 01 58 26.350 25.453 27.0 1.0 135 28.0
2026-08-20 00:00 UT 11 08 56.9 -06 02 32 26.362 25.458 26.1 1.0 136 28.0
2026-08-21 00:00 UT 11 09 04.2 -06 03 07 26.373 25.462 25.3 1.0 137 28.0
2026-08-22 00:00 UT 11 09 11.6 -06 03 43 26.384 25.467 24.4 0.9 138 28.0
2026-08-23 00:00 UT 11 09 19.1 -06 04 19 26.395 25.472 23.6 0.9 139 28.0
2026-08-24 00:00 UT 11 09 26.6 -06 04 56 26.405 25.477 22.8 0.9 140 28.0
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.
