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Comet

PANSTARRS

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C/2026 L2 (PANSTARRS)

PANSTARRS is a comet in the Comet orbit class. Its orbit takes it from 3.4 AU to 6,713.62 AU from the Sun; one orbit takes 194,638.1 years. Orbit from the JPL solution of 16 July 2026.

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
3.859 AU
True anomaly
40.41°
Distance from Earth
3.884 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 PANSTARRS — 3.859 AU from the Sun PANSTARRS
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. PANSTARRS is 3.884 AU from Earth today (32.3 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
19h 15m 20s
Declination
+10° 04′ 24″
Constellation
Aquila
Distance from Earth
3.89 AU
Elongation from the Sun
80.87° — 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
3,358.509 AU
Eccentricity
0.999
Inclination
55.54°
Orbital period
194,638.1 years
Perihelion
3.399 AU
Aphelion
6,713.619 AU
Longitude of ascending node
283.67°
Argument of periapsis
360°
Epoch · J2000
2461202.5
Orbit class · COM
Comet
Earth MOID · 927.0 LD
2.3819 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
1.295

Orbit quality

Observations used
36
Data arc
40 days
First observed
14 May 2026
Last observed
23 June 2026
Residual RMS
0.45 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
16 July 2026

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
12.9
Total magnitude M₁ · K₁ 10
12.9

Discovery & classification

Also known as 2026 L2

Named

Sources