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Comet

Gibbs

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C/2011 A3 (Gibbs)

Gibbs is a comet in the Comet orbit class. Its orbit takes it from 2.34 AU to 2,335.35 AU from the Sun; one orbit takes 39,961.7 years. Orbit from the JPL solution of 16 April 2021.

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
31.699 AU
True anomaly
148.64°
Distance from Earth
30.88 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 Gibbs — 31.699 AU from the Sun Gibbs
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. Gibbs is 30.88 AU from Earth today (4.3 light-hours).

In the sky

Right ascension
04h 03m 21s
Declination
-04° 54′ 22″
Constellation
Eridanus
Distance from Earth
30.88 AU
Elongation from the Sun
145.17° — 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
1,168.846 AU
Eccentricity
0.998
Inclination
26.07°
Orbital period
39,961.7 years
Perihelion
2.345 AU
Aphelion
2,335.346 AU
Longitude of ascending node
124.9°
Argument of periapsis
141.16°
Epoch · J2000
2455749.5
Orbit class · COM
Comet
Earth MOID · 538.9 LD
1.3848 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
1.709

Orbit quality

Observations used
1,747
Data arc
2.72 years
First observed
15 January 2011
Last observed
6 October 2013
Residual RMS
0.54 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
16 April 2021

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
9.9
Total magnitude M₁ · K₁ 8.5
9.9

Discovery & classification

Also known as 2011 A3

Named

Sources