Comet 10P/Tempel
Comet 10P/Tempel (also known as Comet Tempel 2) is a periodic comet that orbits the Sun once every 5.4 years. It has an eccentric orbit that takes it from a perihelion distance of 1.4 astronomical units (AU) to an aphelion distance of 4.7 AU. It was first discovered by Wilhelm Tempel in France on July 4, 1873.
Comet 10P/Tempel is currently in the constellation of Cancer, at a distance of 691,548,668 kilometers from Earth.
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The observed values of Magnitude, Coma Diameter and Tail Length are derived from the most recent observation recorded at the Comet Observers Database. The value of Predicted Magnitude comes from the JPL Horizons ephemerides service and, in the case of comets, might be inaccurate given the highly dynamic and unpredictable behavior of these objects. When available, please refer to the Observed Magnitude value and consider the Predicted Magnitude as a directional indication. We acknowledge with thanks the comet observations from the COBS Comet Observation Database contributed by observers worldwide and used in this table to report recent comet observations.
Today's rise, transit and set times of Comet 10P/Tempel from Greenwich, United Kingdom (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- 10P/Tempel is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom.
- Given its current magnitude, 10P/Tempel is visible only through long exposure photography.
- Go to interactive sky chart
If you need to access this information frequently for your observations, you can create a simple customized Quick Access page, so that you can easily bookmark it in your browser favorites or add a shortcut to your mobile phones' home screen.
Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Comet 10P/Tempel is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Comet 10P/Tempel?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Comet 10P/Tempel in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Comet 10P/Tempel Distance from Earth
The distance of Comet 10P/Tempel from Earth is currently 691,548,668 kilometers, equivalent to 4.622717 Astronomical Units. Light takes 38 minutes and 26.7581 seconds to travel from Comet 10P/Tempel and arrive to us.
The following chart shows the distance of Comet 10P/Tempel from Earth as a function of time. In the chart the distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with an interval of 1 day.
The value of the reported distance might be somewhat inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of 10P/Tempel from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach of Comet 10P/Tempel to Earth
Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Comet 10P/Tempel to Earth happens on Tue Aug 4 2026 at a distance of 0.414485 Astronomical Units, or 62,006,140 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Comet 10P/Tempel Brightness and Light Curve
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Comet 10P/Tempel, according to the most recent ephemerides data. Magnitude data is sampled with a 2 days interval and there might be inaccuracies for objects changing brightness very rapidly during the course of a few days. For comets there could be large discrepancies between the observed and predicted brightness because of their highly dynamic behaviour.
Comet 10P/Tempel Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Comet 10P/Tempel at epoch 23 February 2013 00:00 UTC (JD: 2456347.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.53633842 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 12.02667997° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.42108308 AU 212,591,004 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
4.70874586 AU 704,418,355 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
3.06491447 AU 458,504,680 km |
| Orbital period | period |
5.3658 years 1,959.8641 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2010-Jul-04 09:41:17 2,455,381.9037 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2015-Nov-15 06:25 2,457,341.7678 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 195.55075365048° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 117.8021486° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 177.36672218522° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.18368620°/day |
Visualization of Comet 10P/Tempel Orbit
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Comet 10P/Tempel with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Comet 10P/Tempel and the planets along their orbits in this diagram accurately represents the current configuration of the objects in the Solar System. This is an experimental feature and it requires a WebGL enabled browser. Please provide us feedback!
View Comet 10P/Tempel in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Comet 10P/Tempel 15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Comet 10P/Tempel computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Comet 10P/Tempel in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 May 01 | 08h 58m 10s | +22° 43’ 49” | 21.06 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 02 | 08h 58m 27s | +22° 42’ 25” | 21.07 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 03 | 08h 58m 42s | +22° 40’ 59” | 21.08 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 04 | 08h 58m 59s | +22° 39’ 30” | 21.08 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 05 | 08h 59m 17s | +22° 37’ 59” | 21.09 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 06 | 08h 59m 35s | +22° 36’ 24” | 21.10 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 07 | 08h 59m 54s | +22° 34’ 45” | 21.10 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 08 | 09h 00m 15s | +22° 33’ 03” | 21.11 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 09 | 09h 00m 34s | +22° 31’ 18” | 21.12 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 10 | 09h 00m 56s | +22° 29’ 31” | 21.12 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 11 | 09h 01m 18s | +22° 27’ 41” | 21.13 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 12 | 09h 01m 41s | +22° 25’ 47” | 21.13 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 13 | 09h 02m 06s | +22° 23’ 52” | 21.14 | Cancer |
| 2024 May 14 | 09h 02m 30s | +22° 21’ 52” | 21.15 | Cancer |