C/2014 Q1 (PanSTARRS)

C/2014 Q1 (PanSTARRS)
C/2014 Q1 (PanSTARRS) as seen from the European Southern Observatory on 18 July 2015
Discovery
Discovered byPanSTARRS
Discovery date16 August 2014
Orbital characteristics
Epoch17 February 2015 (JD 2457070.5)
Observation arc1.74 years (636 days)
Number of
observations
704
Aphelion~2,260 AU
Perihelion0.315 AU
Semi-major axis~1,130 AU
Eccentricity0.99972
Orbital period~38,100 years
Inclination43.107°
8.763°
Argument of
periapsis
120.05°
Mean anomaly359.99°
Last perihelion6 July 2015
TJupiter0.512
Earth MOID0.091 AU
Jupiter MOID1.585 AU
Physical characteristics
Mean diameter
1.6 km (0.99 mi)
Comet total
magnitude
(M1)
9.7
4.0
(2015 apparition)

C/2014 Q1 (PanSTARRS) is a non-periodic comet discovered on 16 August 2014 by the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System (Pan-STARRS). The comet after its perihelion on 6 July 2015 reached a magnitude of +4 while being in evening twilight. The comet featured three tails during its outbound trajectory.