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Comet

Eclipse comet

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C/1948 V1 (Eclipse comet)

Eclipse comet is a comet in the Comet orbit class. Its orbit takes it from 0.14 AU to 3,149.44 AU from the Sun; one orbit takes 62,494.4 years. Orbit from the JPL solution of 15 April 2021.

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
101.811 AU
True anomaly
175.89°
Distance from Earth
102.022 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 Eclipse comet — 101.811 AU from the Sun Eclipse comet
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. Eclipse comet is 102.022 AU from Earth today (14.1 light-hours).

In the sky

Right ascension
08h 47m 10s
Declination
-05° 23′ 51″
Constellation
Hydra
Distance from Earth
102.02 AU
Elongation from the Sun
77.84° — well clear of the Sun

Visible from both hemispheres.

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
1,574.787 AU
Eccentricity
0.9999
Inclination
23.12°
Orbital period
62,494.4 years
Perihelion
0.135 AU
Aphelion
3,149.439 AU
Longitude of ascending node
211.04°
Argument of periapsis
107.25°
Epoch · J2000
2432926.5
Orbit class · COM
Comet
Earth MOID · 73.3 LD
0.1883 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
0.423

Orbit quality

Observations used
17
Data arc
137 days
First observed
12 November 1948
Last observed
29 March 1949
Residual RMS
0.95 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
15 April 2021

Discovery & classification

Also known as 1948 V1

Named

Sources