C/2020 O2 (Amaral)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Nearest approach	10 Jun 2021	15.4	4.889 AU	3.875 AU	16h59m	-22°33'	176.2°	0.8°	98°
Perihelion	26 Aug 2021	15.7	4.852 AU	4.669 AU	16h30m	-11°45'	94.4°	12.0°	100°
Today	16 Jul 2026	22.3	13.042 AU	13.247 AU	00h27m	+70°14'	76.2°	4.3°	245°

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 5.5 + 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 C/2020 O2 (Amaral) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.9988850
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 4.8516140
    i (Inclination)                 : 71.77070
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 256.76970
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 10.10750
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 259.96144
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 9.59530
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2459453.20990
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 287023.24

    Epoch                           : 2026 Jul 16
    Reference                       : MPC194168

    Classification(s):              : Nearly isotropic; Returning (a < 10000 AU); External (P > 200 years)

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-07-15 00:00 UT   00 27 08.7   +70 07 53    13.251   13.032   75.3    4.3   247   22.3 
2026-07-16 00:00 UT   00 27 07.2   +70 11 22    13.249   13.037   75.8    4.3   246   22.3 
2026-07-16 21:10 UT   00 27 05.3   +70 14 25    13.247   13.042   76.2    4.3   245   22.3 
2026-07-17 00:00 UT   00 27 05.0   +70 14 49    13.247   13.043   76.2    4.3   245   22.3 
2026-07-18 00:00 UT   00 27 01.9   +70 18 15    13.244   13.048   76.7    4.3   244   22.3 
2026-07-19 00:00 UT   00 26 58.1   +70 21 39    13.242   13.053   77.1    4.4   243   22.3 
2026-07-20 00:00 UT   00 26 53.4   +70 25 00    13.239   13.059   77.6    4.4   242   22.3 
2026-07-21 00:00 UT   00 26 48.0   +70 28 20    13.236   13.064   78.0    4.4   242   22.3 
2026-07-22 00:00 UT   00 26 41.8   +70 31 38    13.234   13.069   78.5    4.4   241   22.3 
2026-07-23 00:00 UT   00 26 34.7   +70 34 54    13.231   13.075   78.9    4.4   240   22.3 
2026-07-24 00:00 UT   00 26 26.9   +70 38 07    13.228   13.080   79.4    4.4   239   22.3 
2026-07-25 00:00 UT   00 26 18.3   +70 41 19    13.225   13.085   79.9    4.4   238   22.3 
2026-07-26 00:00 UT   00 26 08.8   +70 44 28    13.222   13.090   80.3    4.4   237   22.3 

    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.