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Rankin

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P/2024 S2 (Rankin)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
5.559 AU
True anomaly
134.29°
Distance from Earth
6.515 AU
As of
22 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 — 0.995 AU from the Sun Earth Rankin — 5.559 AU from the Sun Rankin
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. Rankin is 6.515 AU from Earth today (54.2 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
12h 53m 17s
Declination
-06° 08′ 16″
Constellation
Virgo
Distance from Earth
6.51 AU
Elongation from the Sun
15.49° — too close to the Sun to observe

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
5.021 AU
Eccentricity
0.5922
Inclination
7.52°
Orbital period
11.25 years
Perihelion
2.048 AU
Aphelion
7.994 AU
Longitude of ascending node
8.35°
Argument of periapsis
49.24°
Epoch · J2000
2460587.5
Orbit class · JFc
Jupiter-family comet (P < 20 y)
Earth MOID · 415.7 LD
1.0682 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
2.606

Orbit quality

Orbit very uncertain — the object may be effectively lost (uncertainty code 8).

Observations used
154
Data arc
14 days
First observed
30 September 2024
Last observed
14 October 2024
Residual RMS
0.57 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
13 January 2025

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
14.7
Total magnitude M₁ · K₁ 10
14.7

Discovery & classification

Also known as 2024 S2

Named

Sources