Today's Highlights
- The Sun is in the constellation of Pisces. The Moon is in the constellation of Virgo and it is in Waning Gibbous phase.
- Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks is in the constellation of Aries and its latest observed magnitude is 4.9. It should be barely visible to the naked eye, easily visible with the help of a small binocular.
- Comet C/2021 S3 (PANSTARRS) is in the constellation of Sagitta and its latest observed magnitude is 10.7. It should be visible with the help of a telescope having an aperture of 6 inches (150mm) or more.
- Comet 13P/Olbers is in the constellation of Taurus and its latest observed magnitude is 11.1. It should be visible with the help of a telescope having an aperture of 6 inches (150mm) or more.
- The next close approach with a Near Earth Object (NEO) will happen with Asteroid (NEO) 2024 FK on Mar 29 2024 at 17:50 UTC (1 days 2 hours 45 minutes), at an approach distance of 1,202,709 kilometers, or 3.13 lunar distances, and a relative speed of 19.16 kilometers per second.
Popular Objects This Week
The Solar System Today
This interactive 3D view shows the current positions of the major bodies of the Solar System and the brightest comets. For more advanced features, check out our 3D Solar System Viewer.
View larger 3D Solar System Simulator
The Sun and the Moon Today
Here is how the Sun and the Moon look like today.
R.A. | Decl. | Apparent Diameter | MagnitudeMag | ConstellationConst | Charts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sun | 00h 29m 42s | +03° 12’ 22” | 1,922.2” | -26.75 | Pisces | location_searching map |
Moon | 14h 47m 03s | -19° 17’ 20” | 1,798.2” | -11.68 | Virgo | map |
The Planets Today
This table shows current essential information about the planets. By clicking on each row it is possible to view full details for each planet.
Planet | R.A. | Decl. | Apparent Diameter | MagnitudeMag | ConstellationConst | Charts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Venus | 23h 26m 46s | -05° 08’ 28” | 10.4” | -3.88 | Aquarius | location_searching map |
Jupiter | 02h 56m 20s | +15° 55’ 00” | 33.5” | -2.07 | Aries | location_searching map |
Mercury | 01h 31m 02s | +12° 42’ 32” | 8.4” | 0.48 | Pisces | location_searching map |
Saturn | 22h 59m 27s | -08° 15’ 22” | 15.1” | 1.05 | Aquarius | location_searching map |
Mars | 22h 25m 32s | -11° 08’ 58” | 4.4” | 1.23 | Aquarius | location_searching map |
Uranus | 03h 11m 42s | +17° 33’ 11” | 3.4” | 5.84 | Aries | location_searching map |
Neptune | 23h 52m 34s | -02° 07’ 57” | 2.2” | 7.83 | Pisces | location_searching map |
The image below shows the current position of the 4 Galilean satellites of Jupiter. A page dedicated to Jupiter's moons is available, with more advanced features.
The image below shows the current inclination of the rings of Saturn and the positions of its major satellites. A page dedicated to the system of Saturn is available, with more advanced features.
The image below shows a comparison between the apparent size of the planets as they appear today. The apparent size of a planet depends on its size and the distance from Earth. The larger the distance, the smaller the apparent size.
8.4”
10.4”
4.4”
33.5”
15.1”
3.4”
2.2”
Credits for the planet images: NASA-APL - NASA.
Top 10 Brightest Comets
This is a list of the brightest comets currently visible in the sky. A more extensive list of (239) bright and interesting comets is available on the site, please check it out.
Comet | R.A. | Decl. | Magnitude (Observed)Mag Obs | Magnitude (Estimated)Mag Pred | Coma DiameterComa Diam | ConstellationConst | Charts | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
12P/Pons-Brooks | 01h 54m 17s | +24° 58’ 56” | 4.9 | 5.33 | 6.0' | Aries Ari | location_searching map | ||
C/2021 S3 (PANSTARRS) | 19h 20m 50s | +18° 57’ 38” | 10.7 | 7.47 | 2.1' | Sagitta Sge | location_searching map | ||
13P/Olbers | 03h 35m 53s | +14° 02’ 19” | 11.1 | 10.67 | 2.9' | Taurus Tau | location_searching map | ||
144P/Kushida | 06h 59m 34s | +17° 12’ 52” | 11.9 | 15.55 | 2.1' | Gemini Gem | location_searching map | ||
C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) | 14h 38m 11s | -05° 19’ 56” | 12.0 | 12.64 | 1.3' | Virgo Vir | location_searching map | ||
62P/Tsuchinshan | 12h 13m 17s | +09° 58’ 35” | 13.2 | 14.04 | 1.1' | Virgo Vir | location_searching map | ||
C/2021 G2 (Atlas) | 12h 00m 56s | -36° 10’ 33” | 13.6 | 14.59 | 0.6' | Centaurus Cen | location_searching map | ||
C/2019 U5 (PANSTARRS) | 07h 35m 24s | -40° 06’ 13” | 14.6 | 15.29 | 0.5' | Puppis Pup | location_searching map | ||
C/2017 K2 (PANSTARRS) | 05h 09m 56s | +09° 08’ 00” | 14.8 | 16.15 | 0.5' | Orion Ori | location_searching map | ||
C/2022 L2 (ATLAS) | 13h 08m 53s | -38° 48’ 49” | 14.9 | 12.13 | 0.5' | Centaurus Cen | location_searching map |
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.
Brightest Asteroids Visible Today
This is a list of the top 10 brightest asteroids visible tonight. Click on each line to go to the asteroids's detail page. You can also check the full list of tracked asteroids and dwarf planets (79).
Asteroid | R.A. | Decl. | MagnitudeMag | ConstellationConst | Charts | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4 Vesta | 05h 55m 05s | +24° 28’ 09” | 8.09 | Taurus | location_searching map | ||
1 Ceres | 19h 05m 56s | -23° 24’ 33” | 8.86 | Sagittarius | location_searching map | ||
3 Juno | 10h 37m 33s | +08° 09’ 22” | 9.19 | Leo | location_searching map | ||
2 Pallas | 16h 49m 10s | +15° 42’ 25” | 9.20 | Hercules | location_searching map | ||
15 Eunomia | 23h 45m 44s | +06° 20’ 52” | 10.01 | Pisces | location_searching map | ||
6 Hebe | 14h 49m 41s | +04° 36’ 53” | 10.09 | Virgo | location_searching map | ||
12 Victoria | 12h 33m 00s | -14° 18’ 52” | 10.45 | Corvus | location_searching map | ||
9 Metis | 06h 23m 31s | +28° 16’ 25” | 10.68 | Auriga | location_searching map | ||
349 Dembowska | 10h 30m 36s | +18° 38’ 01” | 10.81 | Leo | location_searching map | ||
8 Flora | 02h 44m 01s | +12° 25’ 59” | 10.83 | Aries | location_searching map |