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Comet Near-Earth

La Sagra

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P/2012 NJ (La Sagra)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
15.46 AU
True anomaly
184.4°
Distance from Earth
15.898 AU
As of
11 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 — 0.998 AU from the Sun Earth La Sagra — 15.46 AU from the Sun La Sagra
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. La Sagra is 15.898 AU from Earth today (2.2 light-hours).

In the sky

Right ascension
09h 42m 54s
Declination
+31° 21′ 20″
Constellation
Leo
Distance from Earth
15.89 AU
Elongation from the Sun
62.82° — well clear of the Sun

Favours the northern hemisphere; low or below the horizon from far south.

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
8.503 AU
Eccentricity
0.8481
Inclination
84.38°
Orbital period
24.79 years
Perihelion
1.292 AU
Aphelion
15.714 AU
Longitude of ascending node
315.76°
Argument of periapsis
338.41°
Epoch · J2000
2456158.5
Orbit class · HTC
Halley-type comet
Earth MOID · 122.7 LD
0.3153 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
0.745

Orbit quality

Orbit reasonably well determined (uncertainty code 3).

Observations used
2,490
Data arc
272 days
First observed
13 July 2012
Last observed
11 April 2013
Residual RMS
0.31 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
15 April 2021

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
14.8
Total magnitude M₁ · K₁ 4.5
14.8

Discovery & classification

Also known as 2012 NJ

Near-Earth Object Named

Close approaches 2 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of La Sagra at 2061-07-30 19:21 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2061-07-30 19:21 UTC close approach of La Sagra. Catalogue miss distance 155.1 LD · 5.96 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2061-07-27 to 2061-08-02, with a mark at UTC midnights and an arrow for the direction of motion. The circle is the Moon’s mean orbit; the Moon is plotted at closest approach. A ray shows the Sun’s direction. The labelled distance is the full separation. The drawn radius is the part that lies in the ecliptic plane. At closest approach the object is south of the ecliptic. The path is approximate: a two-body Kepler propagation of the catalogue orbital elements, not a numerical integration. The Moon’s position is approximate. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate. approximate Sun 155.1 LD · 5.96 × 10⁷ km 2061-07-30 19:21 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2061-07-30 19:21 UTC close approach of La Sagra. Catalogue miss distance 155.1 LD · 5.96 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2061-07-27 to 2061-08-02, with a mark at UTC midnights and an arrow for the direction of motion. The circle is the Moon’s mean orbit; the Moon is plotted at closest approach. A ray shows the Sun’s direction. The labelled distance is the full separation. The drawn radius is the part that lies in the ecliptic plane. At closest approach the object is south of the ecliptic. The path is approximate: a two-body Kepler propagation of the catalogue orbital elements, not a numerical integration. The Moon’s position is approximate. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate.

When (UTC) Body Distance Lunar distances Relative speed
2061-07-30 19:21:00 Earth 0.3986 AU 155.1 LD 42.9 km/s

Next ten from today. 1 lunar distance = 384,400 km. Source: JPL close-approach data.

Sources