C/2019 O3 (Palomar)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Nearest approach	23 Jul 2020	16.4	8.918 AU	8.274 AU	19h24m	+32°05'	126.7°	5.2°	166°
Perihelion	7 Mar 2021	16.6	8.820 AU	9.209 AU	19h42m	+36°05'	64.1°	5.8°	298°
Today	29 Oct 2025	20.7	12.931 AU	12.907 AU	10h36m	+66°10'	89.1°	4.4°	308°

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 -7.3 + 5 log[∆] + 20.2 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/2019 O3 (Palomar) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 1.0022380
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 8.8204400
    i (Inclination)                 : 89.79250
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 300.48120
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 60.08830
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 300.84188
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 60.08765
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2459281.45990

    Epoch                           : 2025 Oct 28
    Reference                       : MPC182878

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

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2025-10-28 00:00 UT   10 36 15.4   +66 07 46    12.917   12.925   88.2    4.4   309   20.7 
2025-10-29 00:00 UT   10 36 27.2   +66 09 32    12.910   12.929   88.9    4.4   308   20.7 
2025-10-29 10:24 UT   10 36 32.1   +66 10 19    12.907   12.931   89.1    4.4   308   20.7 
2025-10-30 00:00 UT   10 36 38.3   +66 11 21    12.903   12.933   89.5    4.4   307   20.7 
2025-10-31 00:00 UT   10 36 48.8   +66 13 12    12.896   12.937   90.1    4.4   307   20.7 
2025-11-01 00:00 UT   10 36 58.8   +66 15 07    12.889   12.941   90.7    4.4   306   20.7 
2025-11-02 00:00 UT   10 37 08.1   +66 17 05    12.882   12.944   91.4    4.4   305   20.7 
2025-11-03 00:00 UT   10 37 16.8   +66 19 05    12.875   12.948   92.0    4.4   304   20.7 
2025-11-04 00:00 UT   10 37 24.9   +66 21 08    12.868   12.952   92.6    4.4   304   20.7 
2025-11-05 00:00 UT   10 37 32.4   +66 23 14    12.861   12.956   93.3    4.4   303   20.7 
2025-11-06 00:00 UT   10 37 39.2   +66 25 23    12.854   12.960   93.9    4.4   302   20.7 
2025-11-07 00:00 UT   10 37 45.3   +66 27 34    12.848   12.964   94.5    4.4   301   20.7 
2025-11-08 00:00 UT   10 37 50.8   +66 29 48    12.841   12.967   95.1    4.4   300   20.7 

    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.