|
C/2017 Y2 (PANSTARRS) |
| ephemeris |
date |
magn |
radius |
delta |
ra |
dec |
elong |
phase |
PA |
| Perihelion | 4 Nov 2020 | 16.8 | 4.619 AU | 5.311 AU | 17h20m | -01°46' | 41.7° | 8.2° | 68° |
| Nearest approach | 24 May 2021 | 16.5 | 4.889 AU | 3.885 AU | 16h39m | -17°06' | 171.3° | 1.8° | 243° |
| Today | 23 Nov 2025 | 25.3 | 13.438 AU | 13.764 AU | 10h35m | -44°08' | 68.8° | 3.9° | 278° |
C/2017 Y2 (PANSTARRS)- 2025-11-23
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 4.0 + 5 log[∆] + 13.9 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/2017 Y2 (PANSTARRS) are:
e (Eccentricity) : 1.0008460
q (Perihelion distance) : 4.6186070
i (Inclination) : 128.44610
Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 66.02130
ω (Argument of perihelion) : 147.76800
L (Longitude of perihelion) : 87.42845
B (Latitude of perihelion) : 24.69043
T (Time of perihelion passage) : 2459158.28710
Epoch : 2025 Nov 12
Reference : MPEC 2024-DC6
Classification(s): : Nearly isotropic; New (a > 10000 AU)
Ephemerides
Date Time RA (2000) DEC (2000) delta radius elong phase PA magn
2025-11-22 00:00 UT 10 35 36.1 -44 04 31 13.769 13.432 68.1 3.9 277 25.3
2025-11-23 00:00 UT 10 35 32.8 -44 07 51 13.765 13.438 68.7 3.9 278 25.3
2025-11-23 02:31 UT 10 35 32.5 -44 08 12 13.764 13.438 68.8 3.9 278 25.3
2025-11-24 00:00 UT 10 35 29.2 -44 11 11 13.760 13.443 69.3 3.9 279 25.3
2025-11-25 00:00 UT 10 35 25.1 -44 14 30 13.755 13.448 69.9 4.0 280 25.3
2025-11-26 00:00 UT 10 35 20.7 -44 17 49 13.750 13.454 70.5 4.0 281 25.3
2025-11-27 00:00 UT 10 35 15.8 -44 21 07 13.745 13.459 71.2 4.0 281 25.3
2025-11-28 00:00 UT 10 35 10.5 -44 24 24 13.740 13.465 71.8 4.0 282 25.3
2025-11-29 00:00 UT 10 35 04.8 -44 27 41 13.734 13.470 72.4 4.0 283 25.4
2025-11-30 00:00 UT 10 34 58.7 -44 30 56 13.729 13.475 73.1 4.0 284 25.4
2025-12-01 00:00 UT 10 34 52.2 -44 34 11 13.724 13.481 73.7 4.0 285 25.4
2025-12-02 00:00 UT 10 34 45.3 -44 37 24 13.718 13.486 74.4 4.0 286 25.4
2025-12-03 00:00 UT 10 34 38.0 -44 40 37 13.712 13.492 75.0 4.0 286 25.4
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.
