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Comet

PANSTARRS

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C/2023 H3 (PANSTARRS)

PANSTARRS is a comet in the Jupiter-family comet (P < 20 y) orbit class. Its orbit takes it from 5.23 AU to 22.03 AU from the Sun; one orbit takes 50.33 years. Orbit from the JPL solution of 27 April 2026.

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
7.531 AU
True anomaly
78.49°
Distance from Earth
7.158 AU
As of
24 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 PANSTARRS — 7.531 AU from the Sun PANSTARRS
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. PANSTARRS is 7.158 AU from Earth today (59.5 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
21h 31m 58s
Declination
-17° 23′ 06″
Constellation
Capricornus
Distance from Earth
7.16 AU
Elongation from the Sun
108.03° — well clear of the Sun

Favours the southern hemisphere; low or below the horizon from far north.

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
13.632 AU
Eccentricity
0.6162
Inclination
2.49°
Orbital period
50.33 years
Perihelion
5.232 AU
Aphelion
22.031 AU
Longitude of ascending node
55.1°
Argument of periapsis
193.32°
Epoch · J2000
2460305.5
Orbit class · JFc
Jupiter-family comet (P < 20 y)
Earth MOID · 1,642.5 LD
4.2205 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
2.929

Orbit quality

Orbit reasonably well determined (uncertainty code 4).

Observations used
82
Data arc
859 days
First observed
16 March 2023
Last observed
22 July 2025
Residual RMS
0.26 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
27 April 2026

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
14
Total magnitude M₁ · K₁ 4.5
14

Discovery & classification

Also known as 2023 H3

Named

Sources