C/2024 Q3 (PANSTARRS)
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Perihelion	5 Mar 2025	20.2	2.092 AU	2.550 AU	20h03m	+21°52'	52.0°	22.0°	297°
Nearest approach	7 May 2025	19.8	2.220 AU	1.889 AU	17h52m	+60°17'	95.2°	26.9°	222°
Today	13 Jan 2026	23.9	4.041 AU	3.618 AU	12h45m	+17°51'	108.6°	13.3°	287°

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. The light curve is based on the absolute magnitude and slope parameter as calculated from an MPEC, or the latest values provided by the minor planet center. (15.0 + 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/2024 Q3 (PANSTARRS) are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 1.0013460
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 2.0916630
    i (Inclination)                 : 121.37710
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 337.28870
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 70.12860
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 282.05578
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 53.41027
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2460739.70300

    Epoch                           : 2026 Jan 12
    Reference                       : MPC185660

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

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-01-12 00:00 UT   12 46 51.7   +17 44 60     3.632    4.027  106.8   13.5   288   23.9 
2026-01-13 00:00 UT   12 46 03.9   +17 49 01     3.623    4.036  107.9   13.4   288   23.9 
2026-01-13 14:42 UT   12 45 33.9   +17 51 31     3.618    4.041  108.6   13.3   287   23.9 
2026-01-14 00:00 UT   12 45 14.6   +17 53 07     3.615    4.044  109.0   13.3   287   23.9 
2026-01-15 00:00 UT   12 44 24.0   +17 57 19     3.606    4.053  110.2   13.2   287   23.9 
2026-01-16 00:00 UT   12 43 32.0   +18 01 35     3.598    4.061  111.4   13.0   286   23.9 
2026-01-17 00:00 UT   12 42 38.7   +18 05 57     3.590    4.069  112.5   12.9   286   23.9 
2026-01-18 00:00 UT   12 41 44.0   +18 10 23     3.581    4.078  113.7   12.8   285   23.9 
2026-01-19 00:00 UT   12 40 47.9   +18 14 53     3.574    4.086  114.9   12.6   285   23.9 
2026-01-20 00:00 UT   12 39 50.4   +18 19 28     3.566    4.095  116.0   12.5   284   23.9 
2026-01-21 00:00 UT   12 38 51.5   +18 24 06     3.558    4.103  117.2   12.3   284   23.9 
2026-01-22 00:00 UT   12 37 51.3   +18 28 48     3.551    4.111  118.4   12.2   283   23.9 
2026-01-23 00:00 UT   12 36 49.7   +18 33 34     3.544    4.120  119.6   12.0   282   23.9 

    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.