C/2020 F8 (SWAN) - DISINTEGRATED
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Disintegration	2 May 2020	5.2	0.724 AU	0.683 AU	00h04m	-10°47'	45.9°	91.4°	236°
Nearest approach	10 May 2020	5.4	0.573 AU	0.568 AU	01h14m	+17°09'	27.8°	124.6°	264°
Perihelion	25 May 2020	7.4	0.434 AU	0.907 AU	04h18m	+46°18'	25.3°	91.1°	5°
Today	2 Mar 2026	-	17.662 AU	17.861 AU	04h07m	-25°24'	76.8°	3.1°	88°

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 7.8 + 5 log[∆] + 12.2 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/2020 F8 (SWAN) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 1.0000510
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 0.4336680
    i (Inclination)                 : 110.56660
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 259.81540
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 68.13380
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 218.61754
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 60.33176
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2458995.00460

    Epoch                           : 2025 Nov 12
    Reference                       : MPEC 2023-J29

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

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-03-01 00:00 UT   04 07 06.1   -25 27 29    17.835   17.654   77.8    3.1    87   29.2 
2026-03-02 00:00 UT   04 07 07.6   -25 25 12    17.853   17.659   77.2    3.1    88   29.2 
2026-03-02 12:08 UT   04 07 08.5   -25 24 02    17.861   17.662   76.8    3.1    88   29.2 
2026-03-03 00:00 UT   04 07 09.4   -25 22 55    17.870   17.665   76.5    3.1    89   29.2 
2026-03-04 00:00 UT   04 07 11.4   -25 20 38    17.887   17.671   75.8    3.1    89   29.2 
2026-03-05 00:00 UT   04 07 13.7   -25 18 21    17.904   17.677   75.1    3.1    90   29.2 
2026-03-06 00:00 UT   04 07 16.2   -25 16 04    17.921   17.682   74.5    3.1    91   29.2 
2026-03-07 00:00 UT   04 07 19.0   -25 13 48    17.939   17.688   73.8    3.1    92   29.2 
2026-03-08 00:00 UT   04 07 22.0   -25 11 33    17.956   17.694   73.1    3.1    92   29.2 
2026-03-09 00:00 UT   04 07 25.2   -25 09 17    17.972   17.699   72.5    3.1    93   29.2 
2026-03-10 00:00 UT   04 07 28.6   -25 07 02    17.989   17.705   71.8    3.1    94   29.2 
2026-03-11 00:00 UT   04 07 32.3   -25 04 48    18.006   17.711   71.2    3.0    95   29.2 
2026-03-12 00:00 UT   04 07 36.2   -25 02 33    18.023   17.717   70.5    3.0    95   29.2 

    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.