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Comet

Vaisala

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C/1944 H1 (Vaisala)

Vaisala is a comet in the Comet orbit class. Its orbit takes it from 2.41 AU to 709.19 AU from the Sun; one orbit takes 6,711.5 years. Orbit from the JPL solution of 15 April 2021.

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
100.377 AU
True anomaly
163.46°
Distance from Earth
99.61 AU
As of
25 October 2026

Two-body Kepler propagation — accurate to ~0.1% for major planets over decades, less so for highly-perturbed bodies. Use JPL Horizons for high precision.

Sun Earth — 0.994 AU from the Sun Earth Vaisala — 100.377 AU from the Sun Vaisala
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. Vaisala is 99.61 AU from Earth today (13.8 light-hours).

In the sky

Right ascension
04h 27m 39s
Declination
+33° 32′ 59″
Constellation
Perseus
Distance from Earth
99.61 AU
Elongation from the Sun
140.34° — well clear of the Sun

Favours the northern hemisphere; low or below the horizon from far south.

From your location

See how high it is right now, whether it is up after civil twilight, and when it rises and sets where you are.

How do I find my coordinates?

Google Maps on a computer

  1. Right-click the spot where you'll be observing.
  2. The first line of the menu is the coordinates, e.g. 51.50722, -0.12758 — click it and they're copied.
  3. Paste them above.

Google Maps on a phone

  1. Press and hold the spot to drop a pin.
  2. The coordinates appear in the search bar (or on the pin's card) — tap to copy, then paste above.

A full Google Maps link works too, but the short maps.app.goo.gl share links don't carry coordinates — copy the numbers instead. We round to about a kilometre; that's all the sky calculation needs.

Know your what3words address? Paste it, e.g. ///filled.count.soap. This is optional — the three words are sent to what3words to convert them, and we don't store the address or the result.

Your location stays in your browser and is sent only for this calculation. Using a what3words address is optional; if you do, the three words go to what3words to be converted and we don't record them. Set a location first, then you can save an email alert for this object. See our privacy policy.

Two-body approximation, good to about a degree for the planets — enough to find the constellation and know whether it is up.

Orbital elements

Semi-major axis
355.802 AU
Eccentricity
0.9932
Inclination
17.3°
Orbital period
6,711.5 years
Perihelion
2.411 AU
Aphelion
709.193 AU
Longitude of ascending node
29.07°
Argument of periapsis
238.94°
Epoch · J2000
2431201.5
Orbit class · COM
Comet
Earth MOID · 564.1 LD
1.4496 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
1.85

Orbit quality

Observations used
5
Data arc
8 days
First observed
18 April 1944
Last observed
26 April 1944
Residual RMS
0.17 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
15 April 2021

Discovery & classification

Also known as 1944 H1

Named

Sources