C/2020 H6 ATLAS
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Comet C/2020 H6 was discovered on 22 April 2020, about 1.3 yr before its perihelion passage. This comet was observed until 8 January 2024 (as in February 2025).
Comet had its closest approach to the Earth on 30 April 2021 (3.86 au); about six months before its perihelion passage.
The preferred NG solution ('bd') given here is based on data span over 3.72 yr in a range of heliocentric distances: 6.22 au – 4.70 au (perihelion) – 7.80 au. Orbits based on pre-perihelion and post-perihelion data independently are also presented.
This Oort spike comet suffers moderate planetary perturbations during its passage through the planetary system that lead to a significantly more tight future orbit (semimajor axis of about 2,000 au).
Comet had its closest approach to the Earth on 30 April 2021 (3.86 au); about six months before its perihelion passage.
The preferred NG solution ('bd') given here is based on data span over 3.72 yr in a range of heliocentric distances: 6.22 au – 4.70 au (perihelion) – 7.80 au. Orbits based on pre-perihelion and post-perihelion data independently are also presented.
This Oort spike comet suffers moderate planetary perturbations during its passage through the planetary system that lead to a significantly more tight future orbit (semimajor axis of about 2,000 au).
solution description | ||
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number of observations | 2108 | |
data interval | 2020 04 22 – 2024 01 08 | |
data type | perihelion within the observation arc (FULL) | |
data arc selection | entire data set (STD) | |
range of heliocentric distances | 6.22 au – 4.70 au (perihelion) – 7.8 au | |
detectability of NG effects in the comet's motion | comet with determinable NG~orbit | |
type of model of motion | GR - gravitational orbit | |
data weighting | YES | |
number of residuals | 4166 | |
RMS [arcseconds] | 0.40 | |
orbit quality class | 1a+ |
next orbit statistics, both Galactic and stellar perturbations were taken into account | ||
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no. of returning VCs in the swarm | 5001 | * |
no. of escaping VCs in the swarm | 0 | |
no. of hyperbolas among escaping VCs in the swarm | 0 | |
next reciprocal semi-major axis [10-6 au-1] | 483.68 – 484.01 – 484.32 | |
next perihelion distance [au] | 4.70453 – 4.70453 – 4.70453 | |
next aphelion distance [103 au] | 4.1248 – 4.1275 – 4.1303 | |
time interval to next perihelion [Myr] | 0.093481 – 0.093572 – 0.093666 | |
percentage of VCs with qnext < 10 | 100 |

Upper panel: Time distribution of positional observations with corresponding heliocentric (red curve) and geocentric (green curve) distance at which they were taken. The horizontal dotted line shows the perihelion distance for a given comet whereas vertical dotted line — the moment of perihelion passage.
Middle panel(s): O-C diagram for a given solution (sometimes in comparison to another solution available in CODE), where residuals in right ascension are shown using magenta dots and in declination by blue open circles.
Lowest panel: Relative weights for a given data set(s).
Middle panel(s): O-C diagram for a given solution (sometimes in comparison to another solution available in CODE), where residuals in right ascension are shown using magenta dots and in declination by blue open circles.
Lowest panel: Relative weights for a given data set(s).
next_g orbit statistics, here only the Galactic tide has been included | ||
---|---|---|
no. of returning VCs in the swarm | 5001 | * |
no. of escaping VCs in the swarm | 0 | |
no. of hyperbolas among escaping VCs in the swarm | 0 | |
next reciprocal semi-major axis [10-6 au-1] | 483.68 – 484.01 – 484.33 | |
next perihelion distance [au] | 4.70434 – 4.70434 – 4.70434 | |
next aphelion distance [103 au] | 4.1247 – 4.1274 – 4.1302 | |
time interval to next perihelion [Myr] | 0.093487 – 0.093578 – 0.093672 | |
percentage of VCs with qnext < 10 | 100 |