Skip to content
Public Universe
Comet

Skiff

Add to an observing list or journal →

C/2000 Y2 (Skiff)

Skiff is a comet in the Jupiter-family comet (P < 20 y) orbit class. Its orbit takes it from 2.77 AU to 976.99 AU from the Sun; one orbit takes 10,842.8 years. Orbit from the JPL solution of 15 April 2021.

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
45.721 AU
True anomaly
152.16°
Distance from Earth
45.68 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 Skiff — 45.721 AU from the Sun Skiff
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. Skiff is 45.68 AU from Earth today (6.3 light-hours).

In the sky

Right ascension
20h 15m 40s
Declination
-08° 56′ 58″
Constellation
Capricornus
Distance from Earth
45.68 AU
Elongation from the Sun
91.62° — 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
489.879 AU
Eccentricity
0.9943
Inclination
12.09°
Orbital period
10,842.8 years
Perihelion
2.769 AU
Aphelion
976.99 AU
Longitude of ascending node
185.85°
Argument of periapsis
326.82°
Epoch · J2000
2451955.5
Orbit class · JFc
Jupiter-family comet (P < 20 y)
Earth MOID · 696.2 LD
1.7889 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
2.025

Orbit quality

Observations used
159
Data arc
201 days
First observed
22 November 2000
Last observed
11 June 2001
Residual RMS
0.63 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
15 April 2021

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
14.4
Total magnitude M₁ · K₁ 4.5
14.4

Discovery & classification

Also known as 2000 Y2

Named

Sources