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Comet Near-Earth

ATLAS

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P/2021 Q5 (ATLAS)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
3.146 AU
True anomaly
234.46°
Distance from Earth
3.197 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.

Orbit of Mercury Orbit of Venus Orbit of Mars Sun Earth — 0.998 AU from the Sun Earth ATLAS — 3.146 AU from the Sun ATLAS
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. ATLAS is 3.197 AU from Earth today (26.6 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
18h 26m 22s
Declination
-14° 38′ 25″
Constellation
Scutum
Distance from Earth
3.2 AU
Elongation from the Sun
77.47° — 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
3.283 AU
Eccentricity
0.624
Inclination
10.73°
Orbital period
5.95 years
Perihelion
1.234 AU
Aphelion
5.331 AU
Longitude of ascending node
239.77°
Argument of periapsis
180.88°
Epoch · J2000
2459477.5
Orbit class · JFc
Jupiter-family comet (P < 20 y)
Earth MOID · 96.2 LD
0.2473 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
2.805

Orbit quality

Orbit poorly determined (uncertainty code 6).

Observations used
274
Data arc
77 days
First observed
29 August 2021
Last observed
14 November 2021
Residual RMS
0.77 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
14 January 2025

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
15.8
Total magnitude M₁ · K₁ 4.5
15.8

Discovery & classification

Also known as 2021 Q5

Near-Earth Object Named

Close approaches 4 on record

When (UTC) Body Distance Lunar distances Relative speed
2030-09-04 12:37:00 Juptr 0.0109 AU 4.2 LD 13.5 km/s
2030-09-04 12:37:00 Jupiter 0.0109 AU 4.2 LD 13.5 km/s

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

Sources