Comet 6P/d'Arrest was discovered by Heinrich Louis d'Arrest on June 28, 1851. It has an orbital period of approximately 6.5 years and its perihelion distance is about 1.4 astronomical units (AU), while its aphelion distance is around 5.6 AU.
Find it in the Sky
Chose a date & time and view the position of comet 6P/d'Arrest in the sky on our interactive planetarium.
In Evidence
Comet 6P/d'Arrest
Comet 6P/d'Arrest is in the constellation of Leo, at a distance of
Finder Charts
The sky charts below show, at different resolutions, the position of comet 6P/d'Arrest 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 6P/d'Arrest 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 6P/d'Arrest 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 6P/d'Arrest from Earth is currently
The following graph shows the distance of comet 6P/d'Arrest 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 6P/d'Arrest 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 6P/d'Arrest to Earth will happen on Wednesday 7 August 2047 at a distance of 0.336992 Astronomical Units, or 50,413,268 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 6P/d'Arrest, 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 6P/d'Arrest at epoch March, 28 2021 00:00 UTC (JD: 2459302.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.61267012 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 19.51243095° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.35458525 AU 202,643,070 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
5.63989328 AU 843,716,027 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
3.49723927 AU 523,179,549 km |
| Orbital period | period |
6.5403 years 2,388.8366 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | September 17, 2021 2,459,475.2893 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | April 2, 2028 2,461,864.1259 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 178.10645985005° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 138.93710032586° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 333.96048528036° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.15070097°/day |
Orbit Visualization
The following chart is a 3D animated visualization of the orbit of comet 6P/d'Arrest 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 6P/d'Arrest 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 | 09h 34m 19s | +16° 39’ 07” | 26.23 | Leo |
| Jul 11 2025 | 09h 34m 59s | +16° 36’ 31” | 26.23 | Leo |
| Jul 12 2025 | 09h 35m 40s | +16° 33’ 54” | 26.23 | Leo |
| Jul 13 2025 | 09h 36m 21s | +16° 31’ 16” | 26.23 | Leo |
| Jul 14 2025 | 09h 37m 02s | +16° 28’ 36” | 26.23 | Leo |
| Jul 15 2025 | 09h 37m 43s | +16° 25’ 54” | 26.23 | Leo |
| Jul 16 2025 | 09h 38m 25s | +16° 23’ 12” | 26.24 | Leo |
| Jul 17 2025 | 09h 39m 07s | +16° 20’ 28” | 26.24 | Leo |
| Jul 18 2025 | 09h 39m 49s | +16° 17’ 42” | 26.24 | Leo |
| Jul 19 2025 | 09h 40m 31s | +16° 14’ 56” | 26.24 | Leo |
| Jul 20 2025 | 09h 41m 13s | +16° 12’ 08” | 26.24 | Leo |
| Jul 21 2025 | 09h 41m 56s | +16° 09’ 19” | 26.24 | Leo |
| Jul 22 2025 | 09h 42m 38s | +16° 06’ 28” | 26.24 | Leo |
| Jul 23 2025 | 09h 43m 21s | +16° 03’ 38” | 26.24 | Leo |
Additional Resources on TheSkyLive
- Comet 6P/d'Arrest: Complete reference information on TheSkyLive.com.
- Where is comet 6P/d'Arrest?: Key information on where to find comet 6P/d'Arrest in the sky.
- Distance of comet 6P/d'Arrest from Earth: Find out how far comet 6P/d'Arrest is from Earth right now.
- How Bright is comet 6P/d'Arrest?: Current visual brightness (magnitude) and apparent size.
- Rise and Set Times: Rise and set times of comet 6P/d'Arrest from your location.
- Interactive Sky Map: Planetarium-style interactive visualization of comet 6P/d'Arrest's position in the sky.
- Live Position Tracker: High precision real time tracker of comet 6P/d'Arrest's position using deep space imagery.
- Ephemeris: 15 days comet 6P/d'Arrest's computed ephemeris.
- Orbital elements: Information about comet 6P/d'Arrest orbital parameters.
- Orbit Visualization: 3D interactive visualization showing the orbit of comet 6P/d'Arrest with respect to the major Solar System objects.