| Parameter |
Value |
| Designation |
C/2014 Q2 (Lovejoy) |
| Type |
C |
| Perihelion (tp_cal, UTC) |
2015-01-30T01:39:43.165440Z |
| Orbit solution date (soln_date, UTC) |
2026-03-07T14:42:53Z |
| Obs used |
7892 |
| NEO |
- |
| M1 |
9.800 |
| K1 |
4.750 |
| PC |
- |
Osculating Elements
| Parameter |
Value |
| Epoch (epoch_cal, TDB) |
2015-03-30.0000000 |
| e |
0.99777385 |
| q (au) |
1.290358 |
| a (au) |
579.637230 |
| i (deg) |
80.301302 |
| Ω (om, deg) |
94.975059 |
| ω (w, deg) |
12.395262 |
| M (ma, deg) |
0.004162 |
Magnitude
Scatter + Global Linear
$$
M_a = (9.166 + 2.000\cdot 2.5\log_{10} r) + \epsilon - 2.5\log_{10}\Phi(\theta) + 5\log_{10}\Delta
$$
$$
\theta = 180^\circ - \alpha
$$
$$
\Phi(\theta) = \frac{\delta_{90} D(\theta) + 1}{\delta_{90} + 1},\quad D(\theta) = k\cdot \Phi_{HG}(\theta; g_f) + (1-k)\cdot \Phi_{HG}(\theta; g_b)
$$
$$
\Phi_{HG}(\theta; g) = \left(\frac{1+g^2}{1+g^2-2g\cos\theta}\right)^{3/2},\quad \Phi_{HG}(90^\circ)=1
$$
Model Parameters
| Parameter |
Value |
| H0 |
9.166 |
| n |
2.000 |
| gf |
0.800 |
| gb |
-0.500 |
| k |
0.870 |
| δ90 |
1.000 |
| Parameter |
Symbol |
Range |
Description |
| Absolute magnitude at 1 AU from Sun and Earth |
H0 |
-5 to 20 |
Intrinsic brightness of the comet |
| Photometric slope parameter |
n |
2 to 6 |
Rate of brightness change with heliocentric distance |
| Forward scattering asymmetry factor |
gf |
0.8 to 1 |
Degree of forward scattering |
| Backward scattering asymmetry factor |
gb |
-1 to -0.5 |
Degree of backward scattering |
| Partitioning coefficient |
k |
0.8 to 1 |
Ratio between forward/backward scattering contributions |
| Dust-to-gas brightness ratio |
δ90 |
1 to 10 |
Relative contribution of dust scattering to gas emission |
Reference: EPSC-DPS2025-160
Residuals (Piecewise)
$$\epsilon = a \log_{10} r_{\mathrm{au}} + b$$
| Start (UTC) |
End (UTC) |
a |
b |
| 2014-07-01 |
2015-01-30 |
+10.9131 |
-2.182 |
| 2015-01-30 |
2016-09-10 |
+4.9291 |
-3.119 |
log10 r = log10(heliocentric distance / AU), Δ = geocentric distance (AU)
Ephemeris
| Date/Time (UTC) |
RA (J2000) |
Dec (J2000) |
Nearest HIP |
Dist from HIP (arcmin) |
| 2026-07-29 00:00 |
18:06:28.85 |
-10:48:07.0 |
HIP 88608 |
19.26 |
| 2026-07-29 12:00 |
18:06:25.23 |
-10:48:19.9 |
HIP 88608 |
18.47 |
| 2026-07-30 00:00 |
18:06:21.63 |
-10:48:32.8 |
HIP 88608 |
17.69 |
| 2026-07-30 12:00 |
18:06:18.05 |
-10:48:45.8 |
HIP 88608 |
16.93 |
| 2026-07-31 00:00 |
18:06:14.50 |
-10:48:58.9 |
HIP 88608 |
16.18 |
| 2026-07-31 12:00 |
18:06:10.97 |
-10:49:12.1 |
HIP 88608 |
15.46 |
| 2026-08-01 00:00 |
18:06:07.47 |
-10:49:25.4 |
HIP 88608 |
14.75 |
| 2026-08-01 12:00 |
18:06:03.99 |
-10:49:38.8 |
HIP 88608 |
14.07 |
| 2026-08-02 00:00 |
18:06:00.54 |
-10:49:52.2 |
HIP 88608 |
13.42 |
| 2026-08-02 12:00 |
18:05:57.11 |
-10:50:05.7 |
HIP 88608 |
12.79 |
| 2026-08-03 00:00 |
18:05:53.71 |
-10:50:19.3 |
HIP 88608 |
12.20 |
| 2026-08-03 12:00 |
18:05:50.33 |
-10:50:33.0 |
HIP 88608 |
11.63 |
| 2026-08-04 00:00 |
18:05:46.97 |
-10:50:46.8 |
HIP 88608 |
11.11 |
| 2026-08-04 12:00 |
18:05:43.65 |
-10:51:00.7 |
HIP 88608 |
10.64 |
| 2026-08-05 00:00 |
18:05:40.35 |
-10:51:14.6 |
HIP 88608 |
10.21 |
| 2026-08-05 12:00 |
18:05:37.07 |
-10:51:28.6 |
HIP 88608 |
9.83 |
| 2026-08-06 00:00 |
18:05:33.83 |
-10:51:42.7 |
HIP 88608 |
9.51 |
| 2026-08-06 12:00 |
18:05:30.61 |
-10:51:56.9 |
HIP 88608 |
9.26 |
| 2026-08-07 00:00 |
18:05:27.42 |
-10:52:11.1 |
HIP 88608 |
9.07 |
| 2026-08-07 12:00 |
18:05:24.25 |
-10:52:25.4 |
HIP 88608 |
8.95 |
| 2026-08-08 00:00 |
18:05:21.11 |
-10:52:39.8 |
HIP 88608 |
8.90 |
| 2026-08-08 12:00 |
18:05:18.00 |
-10:52:54.3 |
HIP 88608 |
8.92 |
| 2026-08-09 00:00 |
18:05:14.92 |
-10:53:08.9 |
HIP 88608 |
9.00 |
| 2026-08-09 12:00 |
18:05:11.87 |
-10:53:23.5 |
HIP 88608 |
9.15 |
| 2026-08-10 00:00 |
18:05:08.85 |
-10:53:38.2 |
HIP 88608 |
9.36 |
| 2026-08-10 12:00 |
18:05:05.85 |
-10:53:52.9 |
HIP 88608 |
9.62 |
| 2026-08-11 00:00 |
18:05:02.89 |
-10:54:07.8 |
HIP 88608 |
9.93 |
| 2026-08-11 12:00 |
18:04:59.95 |
-10:54:22.7 |
HIP 88502 |
9.70 |
| 2026-08-12 00:00 |
18:04:57.05 |
-10:54:37.6 |
HIP 88502 |
8.98 |
| 2026-08-12 12:00 |
18:04:54.17 |
-10:54:52.7 |
HIP 88502 |
8.28 |
| 2026-08-13 00:00 |
18:04:51.33 |
-10:55:07.8 |
HIP 88502 |
7.60 |
| 2026-08-13 12:00 |
18:04:48.51 |
-10:55:22.9 |
HIP 88502 |
6.93 |
| 2026-08-14 00:00 |
18:04:45.73 |
-10:55:38.2 |
HIP 88502 |
6.29 |
| 2026-08-14 12:00 |
18:04:42.98 |
-10:55:53.5 |
HIP 88502 |
5.67 |
| 2026-08-15 00:00 |
18:04:40.25 |
-10:56:08.8 |
HIP 88502 |
5.09 |
| 2026-08-15 12:00 |
18:04:37.56 |
-10:56:24.3 |
HIP 88502 |
4.56 |
| 2026-08-16 00:00 |
18:04:34.90 |
-10:56:39.7 |
HIP 88502 |
4.09 |
| 2026-08-16 12:00 |
18:04:32.28 |
-10:56:55.3 |
HIP 88502 |
3.70 |
| 2026-08-17 00:00 |
18:04:29.68 |
-10:57:10.9 |
HIP 88502 |
3.41 |
| 2026-08-17 12:00 |
18:04:27.12 |
-10:57:26.5 |
HIP 88502 |
3.25 |
| 2026-08-18 00:00 |
18:04:24.58 |
-10:57:42.2 |
HIP 88502 |
3.24 |
| 2026-08-18 12:00 |
18:04:22.08 |
-10:57:58.0 |
HIP 88502 |
3.36 |
| 2026-08-19 00:00 |
18:04:19.62 |
-10:58:13.8 |
HIP 88502 |
3.61 |