Comet 364P/PANSTARRS is a periodic comet with an orbital period of 4.9 years. It was discovered by the Pan-STARRS survey on February 13, 2013. It has a highly elliptical orbit with a perihelion distance of 0.8 astronomical units (AU) and an aphelion distance of 4.9 AU. The comet is classified as a Jupiter-family comet, meaning its orbit is controlled and highly influenced by Jupiter's gravity. The next perihelion passage happens on May 11, 2023, and the next one after that will happen in April 2028.
Find it in the Sky
Chose a date & time and view the position of comet 364P/PANSTARRS in the sky on our interactive planetarium.
In Evidence
Comet 364P/PANSTARRS
Comet 364P/PANSTARRS is in the constellation of Taurus, at a distance of
Finder Charts
The sky charts below show, at different resolutions, the position of comet 364P/PANSTARRS in the sky. Click on each chart to access the interactive star map tool.
The following map uses photographic imagery from the Digitized Sky Survey (DSS) to realistically visualize the precise position of comet 364P/PANSTARRS against the stars in the background. The horizontal size of the map measures 60 arcminutes. Click on the image to access a more detailed full-screen view.
Equatorial Coordinates
Apparent
J2000
Additional Information
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.
Rise and Set Times
The following table lists today's rise, transit and set times of comet 364P/PANSTARRS from Greenwich, UK (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
If you need to access this information frequently for your observations, you can create a simple customized Quick Access page, so that you can easily bookmark it in your browser favorites or add a shortcut to your mobile phones' home screen.
Distance from Earth
The distance of comet 364P/PANSTARRS from Earth is currently
The following graph shows the distance of comet 364P/PANSTARRS from Earth as a function of time. In the chart the distance is measured in Astronomical Units and the data is sampled with an interval of 1 day.
Note: The values in this chart may not be entirely accurate around the time of closest approach for objects passing very close to Earth at high speed (e.g., Near-Earth Objects).
The value of the distance of 364P/PANSTARRS from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the live position tracker.
Closest Approach to Earth
In the period between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2099, the closest approach of comet 364P/PANSTARRS to Earth happened on Saturday 8 April 2023 at a distance of 0.120732 Astronomical Units, or 18,061,227 kilometers:
Note: the values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Light Curve
The following chart shows the light curve of comet 364P/PANSTARRS, i.e., its apparent magnitude as a function of time. The curve is calculated using the latest ephemerides provided by JPL Horizons. The magnitude data is sampled with the interval of 2 days. Because of this sampling, inaccuracies may occur for objects that have large variations of brightness over a few days. For comets, large discrepancies can arise between the calculated brightness and the observations due to their highly dynamic, and not always precisely predictable, behavior.
Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of comet 364P/PANSTARRS at epoch February, 18 2020 00:00 UTC (JD: 2458898.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.72258546 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 12.15008512° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 0.79853752 AU 119,459,514 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
4.95846081 AU 741,775,180 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
2.87849917 AU 430,617,347 km |
| Orbital period | period |
4.8838 years 1,783.8059 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | June 24, 2018 2,458,293.8719 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | May 13, 2023 2,460,077.6777 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 211.96613622523° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 46.21758462148° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 122.02344132044° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.20181568°/day |
Orbit Visualization
The following chart is a 3D animated visualization of the orbit of comet 364P/PANSTARRS relative to the other major objects in the Solar System. You can access more advanced features using our 3D Solar System Viewer.
15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of comet 364P/PANSTARRS computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Apparent celestial coordinates are provided.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 10 2025 | 05h 10m 03s | +27° 35’ 46” | 26.33 | Taurus |
| Jul 11 2025 | 05h 10m 52s | +27° 37’ 33” | 26.33 | Taurus |
| Jul 12 2025 | 05h 11m 42s | +27° 39’ 20” | 26.33 | Taurus |
| Jul 13 2025 | 05h 12m 31s | +27° 41’ 07” | 26.33 | Taurus |
| Jul 14 2025 | 05h 13m 19s | +27° 42’ 52” | 26.33 | Taurus |
| Jul 15 2025 | 05h 14m 08s | +27° 44’ 37” | 26.32 | Taurus |
| Jul 16 2025 | 05h 14m 56s | +27° 46’ 21” | 26.32 | Taurus |
| Jul 17 2025 | 05h 15m 44s | +27° 48’ 06” | 26.32 | Taurus |
| Jul 18 2025 | 05h 16m 32s | +27° 49’ 50” | 26.32 | Taurus |
| Jul 19 2025 | 05h 17m 20s | +27° 51’ 33” | 26.31 | Taurus |
| Jul 20 2025 | 05h 18m 07s | +27° 53’ 15” | 26.31 | Taurus |
| Jul 21 2025 | 05h 18m 54s | +27° 54’ 58” | 26.31 | Taurus |
| Jul 22 2025 | 05h 19m 41s | +27° 56’ 40” | 26.31 | Taurus |
| Jul 23 2025 | 05h 20m 27s | +27° 58’ 21” | 26.30 | Taurus |
Additional Resources on TheSkyLive
- Comet 364P/PANSTARRS: Complete reference information on TheSkyLive.com.
- Where is comet 364P/PANSTARRS?: Key information on where to find comet 364P/PANSTARRS in the sky.
- Distance of comet 364P/PANSTARRS from Earth: Find out how far comet 364P/PANSTARRS is from Earth right now.
- How Bright is comet 364P/PANSTARRS?: Current visual brightness (magnitude) and apparent size.
- Rise and Set Times: Rise and set times of comet 364P/PANSTARRS from your location.
- Interactive Sky Map: Planetarium-style interactive visualization of comet 364P/PANSTARRS's position in the sky.
- Live Position Tracker: High precision real time tracker of comet 364P/PANSTARRS's position using deep space imagery.
- Ephemeris: 15 days comet 364P/PANSTARRS's computed ephemeris.
- Orbital elements: Information about comet 364P/PANSTARRS orbital parameters.
- Orbit Visualization: 3D interactive visualization showing the orbit of comet 364P/PANSTARRS with respect to the major Solar System objects.