69P/Taylor
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase	PA
Today	21 Jul 2026	23.4	2.417 AU	2.975 AU	04h47m	+07°59'	48.1°	18.2°	249°
Perihelion	12 Nov 2026	21.3	2.270 AU	1.643 AU	07h31m	+13°13'	117.0°	22.9°	283°
Nearest approach	3 Jan 2027	21.0	2.302 AU	1.322 AU	07h20m	+22°59'	174.1°	2.5°	270°

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. (9.5 + 5 log[∆] + 30.0 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 69P/Taylor are:

    e (Eccentricity)                : 0.4146430
    q (Perihelion distance)         : 2.2703600
    i (Inclination)                 : 22.06130
    Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 104.80510
    ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 343.55860
    L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 89.50906
    B (Latitude of perihelion)      : -6.10249
    T (Time of perihelion passage)  : 2461356.98980
    P (Orbital period in years)     : 7.64

    Epoch                           : 2026 Jul 20
    Reference                       : MPC191599

    Classification(s):              : Ecliptic; Jupiter family
    Tisserand (Jupiter)             : 2.798

Ephemerides

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-07-20 00:00 UT   04 45 48.0   +07 54 04     2.985    2.420   47.6   18.1   249   23.4 
2026-07-21 00:00 UT   04 47 37.7   +07 58 49     2.975    2.418   48.1   18.2   249   23.4 
2026-07-21 01:12 UT   04 47 43.2   +07 59 03     2.975    2.417   48.1   18.2   249   23.4 
2026-07-22 00:00 UT   04 49 27.3   +08 03 29     2.965    2.415   48.5   18.4   250   23.3 
2026-07-23 00:00 UT   04 51 16.9   +08 08 05     2.954    2.413   49.0   18.5   250   23.3 
2026-07-24 00:00 UT   04 53 06.3   +08 12 36     2.944    2.410   49.4   18.7   251   23.3 
2026-07-25 00:00 UT   04 54 55.7   +08 17 02     2.934    2.408   49.9   18.8   251   23.3 
2026-07-26 00:00 UT   04 56 45.0   +08 21 24     2.923    2.406   50.3   19.0   251   23.3 
2026-07-27 00:00 UT   04 58 34.2   +08 25 41     2.913    2.403   50.8   19.1   252   23.2 
2026-07-28 00:00 UT   05 00 23.3   +08 29 54     2.902    2.401   51.3   19.3   252   23.2 
2026-07-29 00:00 UT   05 02 12.3   +08 34 02     2.891    2.399   51.7   19.4   253   23.2 
2026-07-30 00:00 UT   05 04 01.1   +08 38 05     2.881    2.396   52.2   19.6   253   23.2 
2026-07-31 00:00 UT   05 05 49.9   +08 42 05     2.870    2.394   52.6   19.7   253   23.2 

    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.