C/2019 O3 (Palomar)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Nearest approach	23 Jul 2020	16.5	8.918 AU	8.274 AU	19h24m	+32°06'	126.7°	5.2°	166°
Perihelion	7 Mar 2021	16.6	8.820 AU	9.211 AU	19h42m	+36°03'	64.0°	5.8°	299°
Today	19 Jan 2026	20.8	13.248 AU	12.628 AU	10h07m	+69°42'	127.3°	3.4°	217°

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)                : 1.0018900
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 8.8202200
    i (Inclination)                 : 89.79110
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 300.48280
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 60.07940
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 300.84578
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 60.07874
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2459281.11150

    Epoch                           : 2026 Jan 19
    Reference                       : MPC182878

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

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-01-18 00:00 UT   10 09 24.1   +69 39 17    12.622   13.241  127.2    3.4   219   20.8 
2026-01-19 00:00 UT   10 08 30.4   +69 40 57    12.626   13.244  127.2    3.4   218   20.8 
2026-01-19 20:11 UT   10 07 44.7   +69 42 17    12.628   13.248  127.3    3.4   217   20.8 
2026-01-20 00:00 UT   10 07 36.1   +69 42 32    12.629   13.248  127.3    3.4   216   20.8 
2026-01-21 00:00 UT   10 06 41.2   +69 44 02    12.632   13.252  127.3    3.4   215   20.8 
2026-01-22 00:00 UT   10 05 45.9   +69 45 29    12.636   13.256  127.3    3.4   213   20.9 
2026-01-23 00:00 UT   10 04 50.0   +69 46 51    12.640   13.260  127.3    3.4   212   20.9 
2026-01-24 00:00 UT   10 03 53.6   +69 48 08    12.644   13.264  127.3    3.4   210   20.9 
2026-01-25 00:00 UT   10 02 56.8   +69 49 21    12.648   13.268  127.3    3.4   209   20.9 
2026-01-26 00:00 UT   10 01 59.5   +69 50 29    12.653   13.272  127.2    3.4   207   20.9 
2026-01-27 00:00 UT   10 01 01.9   +69 51 32    12.657   13.275  127.1    3.4   205   20.9 
2026-01-28 00:00 UT   10 00 03.9   +69 52 30    12.662   13.279  127.1    3.4   204   20.9 
2026-01-29 00:00 UT   09 59 05.5   +69 53 24    12.667   13.283  127.0    3.4   202   20.9 

    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.