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Comet

ATLAS

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C/2023 S2 (ATLAS)

ATLAS is a comet in the Comet orbit class. Its orbit takes it from 1.07 AU to 299.14 AU from the Sun; one orbit takes 1,839 years. Orbit from the JPL solution of 6 June 2024.

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
10.696 AU
True anomaly
143.78°
Distance from Earth
10.239 AU
As of
24 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 ATLAS — 10.696 AU from the Sun ATLAS
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. ATLAS is 10.239 AU from Earth today (1.4 light-hours).

In the sky

Right ascension
06h 21m 40s
Declination
+09° 11′ 05″
Constellation
Monoceros
Distance from Earth
10.23 AU
Elongation from the Sun
115.78° — 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
150.103 AU
Eccentricity
0.9929
Inclination
20.49°
Orbital period
1,839 years
Perihelion
1.068 AU
Aphelion
299.137 AU
Longitude of ascending node
230.56°
Argument of periapsis
78.11°
Epoch · J2000
2460228.5
Orbit class · COM
Comet
Earth MOID · 119.0 LD
0.3059 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
1.233

Orbit quality

Observations used
392
Data arc
70 days
First observed
28 September 2023
Last observed
7 December 2023
Residual RMS
0.68 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
6 June 2024

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
14.5
Total magnitude M₁ · K₁ 25
14.5

Discovery & classification

Also known as 2023 S2

Named

Sources