Comet 8P/Tuttle
Comet 8P/Tuttle is a periodic comet that orbits the Sun once every 13.6 years. It was discovered by American astronomer Horace Parnell Tuttle on May 3, 1858. The comet has a highly elliptical orbit, with an aphelion distance of about 10.4 AU and a perihelion distance of about 1.02 AU. It was originally classified as a Jupiter-family comet (even though it does not fit the most modern classification criteria), meaning its orbit is strongly influenced by the gravity of Jupiter.
Comet 8P/Tuttle is currently in the constellation of Sagittarius, at a distance of 1,038,295,909 kilometers from Earth.
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The observed values of Magnitude, Coma Diameter and Tail Length are derived from the most recent observation recorded at the Comet Observers Database. The value of Predicted Magnitude comes from the JPL Horizons ephemerides service and, in the case of comets, might be inaccurate given the highly dynamic and unpredictable behavior of these objects. When available, please refer to the Observed Magnitude value and consider the Predicted Magnitude as a directional indication. We acknowledge with thanks the comet observations from the COBS Comet Observation Database contributed by observers worldwide and used in this table to report recent comet observations.
Today's rise, transit and set times of Comet 8P/Tuttle from Greenwich, United Kingdom (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- 8P/Tuttle is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom.
- Right now it is placed in the South direction at an altitude of 19° above the horizon.
- Given its current magnitude, 8P/Tuttle is visible only through long exposure photography.
- Go to interactive sky chart
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Comet 8P/Tuttle Position and Finder Charts
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
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Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 8P/Tuttle is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet 8P/Tuttle?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 8P/Tuttle in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet 8P/Tuttle Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet 8P/Tuttle from Earth is currently 1,038,295,909 kilometers, equivalent to 6.940579 Astronomical Units. Light takes 57 minutes and 43.3824 seconds to travel from Comet 8P/Tuttle and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 8P/Tuttle from Earth as a function of time. In the chart the distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with an interval of 1 day.
The value of the reported distance might be somewhat inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of 8P/Tuttle from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach of Comet 8P/Tuttle to Earth
Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 8P/Tuttle to Earth happens on Mon Dec 28 2048 at a distance of 0.175435 Astronomical Units, or 26,244,724 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet 8P/Tuttle Brightness and Light Curve
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 8P/Tuttle, according to the most recent ephemerides data. Magnitude data is sampled with a 2 days interval and there might be inaccuracies for objects changing brightness very rapidly during the course of a few days. For comets there could be large discrepancies between the observed and predicted brightness because of their highly dynamic behaviour.
Comet 8P/Tuttle Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 8P/Tuttle at epoch 22 August 2008 00:00 UTC (JD: 2454701.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.81978762 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 54.98196883° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.02726309 AU 153,676,372 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
10.37331963 AU 1,551,826,532 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
5.70029136 AU 852,751,452 km |
| Orbital period | period |
13.6099 years 4,971.0028 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2008-Jan-27 00:25:56 2,454,492.5180 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2021-Sep-06 00:29 2,459,463.5208 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 207.51151750851° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 270.34216157066° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 15.13447433004° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.07242000°/day |
Visualization of Comet 8P/Tuttle Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 8P/Tuttle with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 8P/Tuttle and the planets along their orbits in this diagram accurately represents the current configuration of the objects in the Solar System. This is an experimental feature and it requires a WebGL enabled browser. Please provide us feedback!
View Comet 8P/Tuttle in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 8P/Tuttle 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 8P/Tuttle computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 8P/Tuttle in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 May 01 | 18h 38m 44s | -19° 20’ 16” | 22.79 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 02 | 18h 38m 29s | -19° 18’ 48” | 22.79 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 03 | 18h 38m 12s | -19° 17’ 21” | 22.79 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 04 | 18h 37m 54s | -19° 15’ 56” | 22.78 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 05 | 18h 37m 36s | -19° 14’ 30” | 22.78 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 06 | 18h 37m 18s | -19° 13’ 05” | 22.78 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 07 | 18h 37m 00s | -19° 11’ 39” | 22.78 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 08 | 18h 36m 41s | -19° 10’ 15” | 22.78 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 09 | 18h 36m 20s | -19° 08’ 52” | 22.77 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 10 | 18h 36m 00s | -19° 07’ 27” | 22.77 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 11 | 18h 35m 39s | -19° 06’ 05” | 22.77 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 12 | 18h 35m 17s | -19° 04’ 42” | 22.77 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 13 | 18h 34m 55s | -19° 03’ 20” | 22.77 | Sagittarius |
| 2024 May 14 | 18h 34m 33s | -19° 01’ 59” | 22.77 | Sagittarius |