(287) Nephthys
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase
Today	18 Oct 2026	12.6	2.329 AU	1.922 AU	20h32m	-20°34'	101.1°	24.8°
Opposition	16 Dec 2027	11.4	2.409 AU	1.443 AU	05h38m	+08°59'	165.7°	5.8°

The interactive orbit chart above shows the body'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.)

The orbital elements of Nephthys are:

            e (Eccentricity)                : 0.0238262
            a (Semimajor axis)              : 2.3531900
            i (Inclination)                 : 10.03398
            Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 142.22638
            ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 122.46677
            M (Mean anomaly)                : 27.41250
            Epoch                           : 2026 Jun 09

            L (Longitude of perihelion)     : 85.09442
            B (Latitude of perihelion)      : 8.45312
            P (Orbital period in years)     : 3.61            
        

The light curve chart below shows the estimated development of the minor planet's magnitude.

The all-sky chart below shows the path of the minor planet over the same period as the light curve. The current position is marked yellow.

The following chart shows the path of the minor planet in the next few days. The field of view is optimized for (~10x50) binoculars and finderscopes.

Ephemerides:

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-10-18 00:00 UT   20 32 45.3   -20 34 41     1.922    2.329  101.1   24.8    75   12.6 
2026-10-18 12:16 UT   20 33 14.1   -20 34 28     1.928    2.329  100.7   24.9    75   12.7 
2026-10-19 00:00 UT   20 33 42.0   -20 34 13     1.934    2.329  100.3   24.9    75   12.7 
2026-10-20 00:00 UT   20 34 39.9   -20 33 37     1.947    2.329   99.6   24.9    75   12.7 
2026-10-21 00:00 UT   20 35 38.9   -20 32 53     1.959    2.330   98.8   25.0    75   12.7 
2026-10-22 00:00 UT   20 36 39.2   -20 32 01     1.972    2.330   98.0   25.0    75   12.7 
2026-10-23 00:00 UT   20 37 40.7   -20 31 01     1.985    2.330   97.3   25.1    75   12.7 
2026-10-24 00:00 UT   20 38 43.3   -20 29 53     1.997    2.330   96.5   25.1    75   12.7 
2026-10-25 00:00 UT   20 39 47.0   -20 28 37     2.010    2.331   95.8   25.1    75   12.8 
2026-10-26 00:00 UT   20 40 51.8   -20 27 14     2.023    2.331   95.0   25.1    75   12.8 
2026-10-27 00:00 UT   20 41 57.6   -20 25 43     2.036    2.331   94.3   25.2    75   12.8 
2026-10-28 00:00 UT   20 43 04.6   -20 24 04     2.048    2.331   93.6   25.2    75   12.8 
2026-10-29 00:00 UT   20 44 12.5   -20 22 18     2.061    2.332   92.8   25.2    75   12.8 
2026-10-30 00:00 UT   20 45 21.5   -20 20 25     2.074    2.332   92.1   25.2    75   12.8 
2026-10-31 00:00 UT   20 46 31.4   -20 18 23     2.087    2.332   91.4   25.2    75   12.8 
2026-11-01 00:00 UT   20 47 42.3   -20 16 15     2.099    2.332   90.6   25.2    75   12.8 
2026-11-02 00:00 UT   20 48 54.2   -20 13 59     2.112    2.333   89.9   25.2    74   12.9 
2026-11-03 00:00 UT   20 50 07.0   -20 11 35     2.125    2.333   89.2   25.2    74   12.9 
2026-11-04 00:00 UT   20 51 20.8   -20 09 04     2.138    2.333   88.5   25.2    74   12.9 
2026-11-05 00:00 UT   20 52 35.4   -20 06 26     2.151    2.333   87.8   25.1    74   12.9 
2026-11-06 00:00 UT   20 53 51.0   -20 03 41     2.164    2.334   87.1   25.1    74   12.9 
2026-11-07 00:00 UT   20 55 07.4   -20 00 48     2.176    2.334   86.4   25.1    74   12.9 
2026-11-08 00:00 UT   20 56 24.7   -19 57 48     2.189    2.334   85.7   25.0    74   12.9 
2026-11-09 00:00 UT   20 57 42.8   -19 54 41     2.202    2.334   85.0   25.0    74   12.9 
2026-11-10 00:00 UT   20 59 01.7   -19 51 27     2.215    2.335   84.3   25.0    74   13.0 
2026-11-11 00:00 UT   21 00 21.4   -19 48 05     2.228    2.335   83.6   24.9    74   13.0 
2026-11-12 00:00 UT   21 01 41.9   -19 44 37     2.240    2.335   82.9   24.9    74   13.0 
2026-11-13 00:00 UT   21 03 03.1   -19 41 01     2.253    2.335   82.2   24.8    74   13.0 
2026-11-14 00:00 UT   21 04 25.1   -19 37 19     2.266    2.336   81.6   24.8    74   13.0 
2026-11-15 00:00 UT   21 05 47.8   -19 33 30     2.279    2.336   80.9   24.7    74   13.0 
2026-11-16 00:00 UT   21 07 11.3   -19 29 34     2.291    2.336   80.2   24.7    74   13.0 
2026-11-17 00:00 UT   21 08 35.4   -19 25 31     2.304    2.336   79.5   24.6    74   13.0 

    Terminology:
            
    delta:  distance between minor planet and earth in AU
    radius: distance between minor planet 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-minor planet)    
    phase:  phase angle in degrees (angle sun-minor planet-earth)        
    AU:     Astronomical Unit (mean distance between earth and sun: 149597870.7 km
    

Orbital elements provided by 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.