---
title: "266P/Christensen"
url: "https://spacecatalog.org/object/266p-christensen"
release: "DR1"
licence: "No licence stated; citation requested"
citation: "SpaceCatalog. 266P/Christensen [catalogue entry]. Data release DR1 (2026-08-21). https://spacecatalog.org/object/266p-christensen"
---

# 266P/Christensen

266P/Christensen is an Encke-type [comet](https://spacecatalog.org/comets). It orbits the [Sun](https://spacecatalog.org/object/sun) at a mean distance of 3.53195 AU.

## At a glance

- **WHAT IT IS:** Encke-type comet
- **HOW FAR:** 3.532 AU — Its average distance from the Sun, not from Earth.
- **ONE ORBIT TAKES:** 6.64 years — One trip round the Sun.

## Properties

| Quantity | Value |
| --- | --- |
| CLASS | Encke-type comet |
| ORBITS | Sun |
| SEMI-MAJOR AXIS | 3.53195 AU |
| PERIHELION | 2.33234 AU |

## Catalogue data

### THE ORBIT

The shape of the path, where the object sits on it, and the instant those figures were true of. An orbit is a fit to observations and drifts away from the real one either side of its epoch.

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Orbital period | 6.638 years |
| Eccentricity | 0.339646 |
| Inclination | 3.43° |
| Longitude of ascending node | 5° |
| Argument of perihelion | 98.01° |
| Mean anomaly | 207.38° |
| Element epoch | 2457931.5000 JD |
| Perihelion passage | 2458959.3427 JD |
| Minimum distance from Earth's orbit | 1.35056 AU |
| Orbit class | ETc |

### WHEN IT WAS FOUND

Who first saw it, from where, and by what method.

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| First observed | 2012-08-15 |

## Also known as

- Comet: 266P
- Comet: 266P/Christensen

## Source

[JPL Small-Body Database](https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/tools/sbdb_query.html) — No licence stated; citation requested

The producer asks: Solar System Dynamics. (Downloaded 2026, October 1). Small-Body Database Query. https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov

How this was made: https://spacecatalog.org/methods#source-jpl-sbdb

## Cite this page

SpaceCatalog. 266P/Christensen \[catalogue entry\]. Data release DR1 (2026-08-21). https://spacecatalog.org/object/266p-christensen

```bibtex
@misc{spacecatalog_266p-christensen,
  author       = {{SpaceCatalog}},
  title        = {{266P/Christensen}},
  howpublished = {SpaceCatalog, data release DR1 (2026-08-21)},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://spacecatalog.org/object/266p-christensen},
  note         = {Catalogue entry, data release DR1 (2026-08-21). Values from JPL Small-Body Database.}
}
```

JPL Small-Body Database — No licence stated; citation requested

Acknowledgement the producer asks for: Solar System Dynamics. (Downloaded 2026, October 1). Small-Body Database Query. https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov

The page itself, with its pictures, the sky map and the observing tools: https://spacecatalog.org/object/266p-christensen