P/2018 L4 (PANSTARRS)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Today	11 Mar 2026	30.6	7.313 AU	6.621 AU	08h09m	+10°37'	131.1°	5.9°	94°
Nearest approach	18 Jul 2029	19.7	1.692 AU	0.836 AU	17h44m	+16°11'	131.8°	26.6°	140°
Perihelion	26 Jul 2029	19.7	1.689 AU	0.842 AU	17h47m	+11°29'	130.6°	27.2°	128°

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 17.8 + 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 P/2018 L4 (PANSTARRS) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.6587630
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 1.6893280
    i (Inclination)                 : 26.62240
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 145.19600
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 140.47480
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 108.78351
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 16.56986
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2462344.49110
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 11.02

    Epoch                           : 2026 Mar 10
    Reference                       : MPEC 2026-E44

    Classification(s):              : Ecliptic; Jupiter family
    Tisserand (Jupiter)             : 2.363

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-03-10 00:00 UT   08 09 57.3   +10 33 57     6.607    7.316  132.6    5.7    94   30.6 
2026-03-11 00:00 UT   08 09 41.1   +10 36 45     6.617    7.314  131.5    5.8    94   30.6 
2026-03-11 09:28 UT   08 09 34.9   +10 37 51     6.621    7.313  131.1    5.9    94   30.6 
2026-03-12 00:00 UT   08 09 25.5   +10 39 33     6.627    7.311  130.5    5.9    94   30.6 
2026-03-13 00:00 UT   08 09 10.3   +10 42 19     6.637    7.309  129.5    6.0    95   30.6 
2026-03-14 00:00 UT   08 08 55.7   +10 45 04     6.647    7.306  128.4    6.1    95   30.6 
2026-03-15 00:00 UT   08 08 41.6   +10 47 48     6.658    7.304  127.4    6.2    95   30.6 
2026-03-16 00:00 UT   08 08 28.1   +10 50 30     6.668    7.302  126.3    6.3    96   30.6 
2026-03-17 00:00 UT   08 08 15.1   +10 53 12     6.679    7.299  125.3    6.4    96   30.6 
2026-03-18 00:00 UT   08 08 02.7   +10 55 52     6.690    7.297  124.3    6.5    96   30.6 
2026-03-19 00:00 UT   08 07 50.7   +10 58 30     6.701    7.294  123.2    6.6    96   30.6 
2026-03-20 00:00 UT   08 07 39.4   +11 01 07     6.712    7.292  122.2    6.6    97   30.6 
2026-03-21 00:00 UT   08 07 28.6   +11 03 43     6.724    7.290  121.2    6.7    97   30.6 

    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.