Comet 13P/Olbers will make its closest approach to the Sun on
30 June, at a distance of
1.18 AU.
From Los Angeles on the day of perihelion it will not be observable – it will reach its highest point in the sky during daytime and will be no higher than 16° above the horizon at dusk.
The events that comprise the 2024 apparition of 13P/Olbers are as
follows:
The table below lists the times when 13P/Olbers will be visible from
Los Angeles day-by-day through its apparition:
Date | Constellation | Comet visibility |
09 Jun 2024 | Auriga | Not observable |
11 Jun 2024 | Auriga | Not observable |
13 Jun 2024 | Auriga | Not observable |
15 Jun 2024 | Auriga | Not observable |
17 Jun 2024 | Auriga | Not observable |
19 Jun 2024 | Lynx | Not observable |
21 Jun 2024 | Lynx | Not observable |
23 Jun 2024 | Lynx | Not observable |
25 Jun 2024 | Lynx | Not observable |
27 Jun 2024 | Lynx | Not observable |
29 Jun 2024 | Lynx | Not observable |
01 Jul 2024 | Lynx | Not observable |
03 Jul 2024 | Lynx | Not observable |
05 Jul 2024 | Lynx | Visible from 21:18 until 21:19 Highest at 21:18, 18° above NW horizon |
07 Jul 2024 | Lynx | Visible from 21:17 until 21:21 Highest at 21:17, 19° above NW horizon |
09 Jul 2024 | Ursa Major | Visible from 21:17 until 21:23 Highest at 21:17, 19° above NW horizon |
11 Jul 2024 | Ursa Major | Visible from 21:16 until 21:25 Highest at 21:16, 20° above NW horizon |
13 Jul 2024 | Leo Minor | Visible from 21:15 until 21:26 Highest at 21:15, 20° above NW horizon |
15 Jul 2024 | Leo Minor | Visible from 21:13 until 21:27 Highest at 21:13, 21° above NW horizon |
17 Jul 2024 | Leo Minor | Visible from 21:12 until 21:28 Highest at 21:12, 21° above NW horizon |
19 Jul 2024 | Ursa Major | Visible from 21:11 until 21:28 Highest at 21:11, 22° above NW horizon |
A more detailed table of 13P/Olbers’s position on each night is
available here.
A diagram of the orbit of 13P/Olbers is
available here.
Finder chart
The chart below shows the path of 13P/Olbers over the
course of its apparition, as calculated from the orbital elements published by the
Minor Planet Center (MPC).
It is available for download, either on dark background, in
PNG,
PDF or
SVG formats,
or on a light background, in
PNG,
PDF or
SVG formats.
It was produced using
StarCharter.
Comet brightnesses
Comets are intrinsically highly unpredictable objects, since their brightness depends on the scattering of
sunlight from dust particles in the comet’s coma and tail. This dust is continually streaming away from the
comet’s nucleus, and its density at any particular time is governed by the rate of sublimation of the ice in
the comet’s nucleus, as it is heated by the Sun’s rays. It also depends on the amount of dust that is mixed
in
with that ice. This is very difficult to predict in advance, and can be highly variable even between
successive
apparitions of the same comet.
In consequence, while the future positions of comets are usually known with a high degree of confidence,
their future brightnesses are not. For most comets, we do not publish any magnitude estimates at all. For
the few comets where we do make estimates, we generally prefer the BAA’s magnitude parameters to those published
by the Minor Planet Center, since they are typically updated more often.
Based on the magnitude parameters published for this comet by the
BAA Comet Section,
we estimate that it may be around
mag 6 on 30 June 2024.
This estimate is based on observations that the BAA has received from amateur astronomers, assuming that its
current level of activity will remain constant.
This comet is not expected to be visible to the naked eye, but might be visible
through bird-watching binoculars.
The comet’s position at perihelion will be:
Object | Right Ascension | Declination | Constellation | Magnitude |
Comet 13P/Olbers | 08h30m50s | 42°24’N | Lynx | 6.1 |
The coordinates are given in J2000.0.
The sky on 30 Jun 2024
Source
This event was automatically generated on the basis of orbital elements
published by the
Minor Planet Center (MPC)
,
and is updated whenever new elements become available. It was last updated
on 15 Jun 2024.
Image credit
© Andy Roberts 1997. Pictured comet is C/1995 O1 Hale-Bopp.