C/2019 U5 (PANSTARRS)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Nearest approach	24 Mar 2023	12.4	3.627 AU	2.630 AU	12h06m	-01°23'	178.8°	0.3°	84°
Perihelion	29 Mar 2023	12.4	3.626 AU	2.636 AU	11h56m	-01°35'	171.6°	2.3°	101°
Today	18 Aug 2026	18.7	10.273 AU	10.299 AU	04h55m	-38°08'	85.7°	5.6°	250°

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 6.2 + 5 log[∆] + 7.4 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 U5 (PANSTARRS) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.9999030
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 3.6264420
    i (Inclination)                 : 113.51930
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 2.57930
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 181.45520
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 1.99849
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : -1.33429
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2460032.70340

    Epoch                           : 2026 Aug 13
    Reference                       : MPC194164

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

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-08-17 00:00 UT   04 55 10.9   -38 01 53    10.303   10.264   84.9    5.6   248   18.7 
2026-08-18 00:00 UT   04 55 12.4   -38 06 09    10.300   10.270   85.4    5.6   249   18.7 
2026-08-18 13:34 UT   04 55 13.1   -38 08 34    10.299   10.273   85.7    5.6   250   18.7 
2026-08-19 00:00 UT   04 55 13.5   -38 10 26    10.298   10.276   85.9    5.6   250   18.7 
2026-08-20 00:00 UT   04 55 14.1   -38 14 46    10.295   10.282   86.4    5.6   251   18.7 
2026-08-21 00:00 UT   04 55 14.2   -38 19 07    10.292   10.288   86.9    5.6   252   18.7 
2026-08-22 00:00 UT   04 55 13.9   -38 23 31    10.290   10.294   87.4    5.6   253   18.7 
2026-08-23 00:00 UT   04 55 13.1   -38 27 56    10.287   10.301   87.9    5.6   253   18.7 
2026-08-24 00:00 UT   04 55 11.8   -38 32 23    10.284   10.307   88.4    5.6   254   18.7 
2026-08-25 00:00 UT   04 55 10.0   -38 36 52    10.282   10.313   88.9    5.6   255   18.7 
2026-08-26 00:00 UT   04 55 07.8   -38 41 22    10.279   10.319   89.4    5.6   256   18.7 
2026-08-27 00:00 UT   04 55 05.1   -38 45 54    10.276   10.325   89.9    5.6   257   18.7 
2026-08-28 00:00 UT   04 55 01.9   -38 50 27    10.274   10.331   90.4    5.6   258   18.7 

    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.