Observation details: asteroid Ceres
Daily motion of Ceres
1 Ceres will remain visible until June 7, when it moves too close to the Sun and temporarily disappears from the night sky.
Ceres visibility on 2026-10-17
Ceres Visible from before midnight until sunrise
Ceres rise and set timetable
| Time | Elevation | |
Moonrise, 25.9% illuminated  | 11:16 | 10° |
| Astronomical observing session begins | 17:55 | -27° |
| Moonset | 20:29 | -11° |
| Ceres rise | 21:34 | |
| Astronomical observing session ends | 03:51 | 71° |
| Twilight end (−12°) | 04:21 | 75° |
| Ceres transit | 04:50 | 76° |
| Civil sunrise | 04:51 | 76° |
| Sunrise | 05:19 | 75° |
Track Ceres position throughout the night
← 17 October 2026 →
| Time | |
| Altitude | |
| Azimuth |
Shift the map to change the time and observe Ceres changing position in the night sky.
Ceres Description
This asteroid is designated 1 Ceres, main-belt asteroid Its diameter is approximately 940 km. 1 Ceres completes an orbit around the Sun in 4.6 years. It is currently 2.399 AU (358,909,227 km) from Earth, and is located in the constellation Gemini.Current position in the Solar System: Ceres
| Date | Sat, 17 October 2026 |
| Distance from Earth | 2.39916 AU (358,909,227km) |
| Elongation | 94° |
| Angular diameter | " |
| Magnitude | 8.5 |
Finder Chart for
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| Object name | |
| Field of view | |
| Limiting magnitude | |
| coordinates | 7.45599, 23.46781 |
| Center coordinates | 7.45599, 23.46781 |
Annual motion of Ceres
| Date | Sun, 18 October 2026 |
| Twilight start | 17:54 |
| Twilight end | 03:49 |
| Twilight duration | 10h 55m |
| Rise | 21:31 |
| Set | 12:04 |
| Elevation at transit | 76° |
| Transit time | 04:47 |
| Equatorial coordinates | RA: 07h 28m 16s", Dec: 23° 29' 32s |
| Magnitude | 9 |
| Constellation | Gemini |
The graph summarizes the object’s annual visibility, daily observing windows and transit times.
The vertical axis shows time of day and the horizontal axis shows the days of the year.
The shaded area marks when the object is above the horizon; the white line marks daily transit. You can also view the detailed annual visibility table.
The vertical axis shows time of day and the horizontal axis shows the days of the year.
The shaded area marks when the object is above the horizon; the white line marks daily transit. You can also view the detailed annual visibility table.
Astrometric and Physical Parameters of 1 Ceres
Coordinates and Visibility
| Right Ascension | 07h 27m 22s |
| Declination | 23° 28′ 04″ |
| Magnitude | 8.5 |
| Constellation | Gemini |
| Elevation | 10° |
| Azimuth | 68° |
Physical properties
| Mean radius | 476.2 |
| Equatorial radius | 487 |
| Polar radius | 455 |
| Mass | 9.393E+20 |
| Volume | 4210000000 |
| Density | 2.161 |
| Surface gravity | 0.28 |
| Escape velocity | 510 |
| Axial tilt | 3 |
| Average temperature | 168 |
Orbital parameters
| Sidereal orbital period | 1681.63 |
| Sidereal rotation period | 9.07 |
Data acknowledgment
Physical and orbital parameters come from the Solar System OpenData API maintained by Le Système Solaire. We thank its contributors for making these data available.
Acknowledgments
Orbital and small-body data are provided by NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Small-Body Database (SBDB) and Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS). These resources support accurate positions, orbits and physical characteristics.