|
C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS) |
| ephemeris |
date |
magn |
radius |
delta |
ra |
dec |
elong |
phase |
PA |
| Nearest approach | 6 Feb 2023 | 15.1 | 3.373 AU | 2.398 AU | 09h29m | +25°12' | 170.1° | 2.9° | 198° |
| Perihelion | 9 Feb 2023 | 15.1 | 3.373 AU | 2.399 AU | 09h28m | +25°42' | 168.9° | 3.2° | 176° |
| Today | 25 Jul 2026 | 25.7 | 10.521 AU | 9.937 AU | 16h30m | -05°36' | 122.7° | 4.7° | 110° |
C/2020 S4 (PANSTARRS)- 2026-07-25
astro.vanbuitenen.nl
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 5.1 + 5 log[∆] + 15.3 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 S4 (PANSTARRS) are:
e (Eccentricity) : 1.0033470
q (Perihelion distance) : 3.3729680
i (Inclination) : 20.57180
Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 117.67530
ω (Argument of perihelion) : 21.12100
L (Longitude of perihelion) : 137.55815
B (Latitude of perihelion) : 7.27410
T (Time of perihelion passage) : 2459985.40280
Epoch : 2026 Jul 25
Reference : MPC194170
Classification(s): : Nearly isotropic; New (a > 10000 AU)
Ephemerides
Date Time RA (2000) DEC (2000) delta radius elong phase PA magn
2026-07-24 00:00 UT 16 30 54.3 -05 34 07 9.900 10.509 124.5 4.6 110 25.7
2026-07-25 00:00 UT 16 30 46.1 -05 35 30 9.920 10.515 123.6 4.6 110 25.7
2026-07-25 21:37 UT 16 30 39.1 -05 36 46 9.937 10.521 122.7 4.7 110 25.7
2026-07-26 00:00 UT 16 30 38.3 -05 36 55 9.939 10.522 122.6 4.7 110 25.7
2026-07-27 00:00 UT 16 30 30.8 -05 38 21 9.958 10.528 121.7 4.7 109 25.7
2026-07-28 00:00 UT 16 30 23.7 -05 39 48 9.978 10.534 120.8 4.8 109 25.7
2026-07-29 00:00 UT 16 30 16.9 -05 41 16 9.998 10.540 119.9 4.8 109 25.7
2026-07-30 00:00 UT 16 30 10.5 -05 42 46 10.017 10.546 118.9 4.8 108 25.7
2026-07-31 00:00 UT 16 30 04.4 -05 44 17 10.037 10.553 118.0 4.9 108 25.7
2026-08-01 00:00 UT 16 29 58.7 -05 45 49 10.058 10.559 117.1 4.9 107 25.7
2026-08-02 00:00 UT 16 29 53.3 -05 47 23 10.078 10.565 116.2 4.9 107 25.7
2026-08-03 00:00 UT 16 29 48.3 -05 48 57 10.098 10.571 115.2 5.0 107 25.7
2026-08-04 00:00 UT 16 29 43.6 -05 50 33 10.119 10.577 114.3 5.0 106 25.7
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.
