Sungrazing comet brightens! Will you see it without aid?

New sungrazing comet might get bright!

The new comet – C/2026 A1 (MAPS) – is brightening as it heads into the inner solar system. It’s a sungrazing comet that will get scorchingly close to the sun in early April. If it survives, it might put on quite a show around Easter. In fact, some people are even calling it the Easter comet!

As of mid-March, the comet has already brightened to around magnitude 10. And, if this trend continues, it will be easily visible in small telescopes in the next few nights as we get close to new moon on March 18-19. However, the comet will be low in the west for observers in lower latitudes.

The newfound object was shining at around 18th magnitude when it was still twice Earth’s distance from the sun. Magnitude 18 is much too faint to see with the eye. But it’s bright for a comet at that distance.

In fact, it might be the farthest from the sun astronomers have seen a comet like this one, whose orbit suggests it is a Kreutz sungrazer, one of a family of comets that sweep extremely close to the sun. Comet 2026 A1 (MAPS) is on its way to perihelion, its closest point to the sun, on April 4-5, 2026. Seeing it this early suggests it should be decent-sized.

Preliminary observations suggest the newly found comet’s nucleus might have a diameter of up to 1.5 miles (2.4 km) across.

Will this comet be visible to the eye alone?

Observing astronomical events requires patience. And that’s especially true for comets. Sensationalist headlines lead to high public expectations followed by disappointment. Comet MAPS might get really bright, but it’s likely to happen when the object is extremely close to the sun, making it difficult to see.

Now, the good news! If the brightening trending continues as projected, Comet MAPS might still provide some nice views.

• By March 21, 2026, the comet might reach a magnitude around 8.5 , visible in small telescopes.
• By March 26, it might reach a magnitude around 6.7. That would put it possibly visible in binoculars, but very low in the west just after sunset, and only from some locations in lower latitudes.
• By March 31, it might be at 3.4 magnitude (in theory visible to the unaided eye). However, it will be close to the horizon, and likely lost in the sun’s glare.
• By early April, if (a big IF) the comet is still intact, some interesting views might be in the offering.

Comet MAPS in April

Perihelion – or closest approach to the sun – occurs around 9:18 CDT (14:18 UTC) on April 4, 2026. If the comet does not disintegrate, it might briefly become quite bright, with some estimates ranging from magnitude -5 (slightly brighter than Venus), to the incredible magnitude of -15 (brighter than the full moon). Keep in mind that even such a bright object might not be easy to see when it is next to the really bright sun, which has an apparent visual magnitude of -26.7 to -26.8.

But most importantly, observing any object close to the sun is dangerous, with the risk of irreparable damage to the eye’s retina. Only experienced observers might try to cautiously use a building or structure to block the sun and try to spot the nearby comet, if it survives.

So is a good comet show still possible?

There is a slight possibility that we might get a safer-to-see spectacle. If the comet survives, sometime from April 4 to 15 a long cometary tail might appear close to the western horizon during sunset. However, this is still uncertain. Comets are erratic and unpredictable, and sungrazers add even more uncertainty.

Sungrazing comet discovery

The MAPS program, run by a group of French amateur astronomers using telescopes in Chile, discovered the comet on January 13, 2026. They used an 11-inch (0.28 meter) diameter telescope at San Pedro de Atacama, Chile. Their observation program, MAPS, is an acronym that stands for their last names: Maury, Attard, Parrott and Signoret.

How close will Comet C/2026 A1 MAPS get to the sun?

On April 4, 2026, Comet MAPS passes extremely close to the sun, at just 99,400 miles (160,000 km) from the photosphere, or sun’s surface. That’s closer than previous estimates suggested. In fact, it’s scorchingly close. The diameter of the sun itself spans 865,370 miles (139,2678 km).

Comets that get this close to the sun can disintegrate. The intense heat can force outgassing in the comet that rips it apart. Plus, the pull of the sun’s gravity can also cause it to fragment. On the other hand, if it does survive the intense heat of the sun and continue on its journey (outward now in its solar orbit), the comet might become quite bright in earthly skies. We would see it at dusk shortly after its closest approach to the sun, during the first week of April.

Bright sungrazers that have survived

And there is reason to hope the comet will survive! Other comets have passed even closer to the sun and survived. They’ve even become bright beacons in the night sky. For example, C/1965 S1 (Ikeya–Seki) came within 280,000 miles (450,000 km) of the sun. It ended up shining at magnitude -10. Observers called it the Great Comet of 1965. Then, more recently, C/2011 W3 (Lovejoy) came within 87,000 miles (140,000 km) of the sun in 2011. Ultimately, it shone at around magnitude -3 or -4, about as bright as Venus.

This kind of comet does not occur often. So this will be a rare opportunity for scientists to learn more about sungrazing comets.

What does the sungrazing comet look like now?

C/2026 A1 is already showing a small tail and diffuse green coma. The coloring suggest the emission of diatomic carbon (C2), a gas commonly seen in comets. The comet is currently in the constellation of Cetus the Whale, at a distance of around 115 million miles (185 million km) from Earth.

The comet will be closest to Earth on April 5-6, 2026, at a distance of more than 89 million miles (143 million km).

Finder charts

If you have a computerized or “GoTo” telescope, you can use the March finder maps below to spot the comet. And anyone can start looking for the comet in late March and early April, when there is the possibility of seeing it with your eye alone.

A possible fragment from a larger comet

Comet C/2026 A1 (MAPS) might be a fragment of a larger object from a type called Kreutz comets. These comets are named in honor of German astronomer Heinrich Kreutz

Kreutz comets are a family of sungrazing comets. They pass extremely close to the sun. Scientists think they might be big fragments of a huge comet that broke apart centuries ago.

Comet MAPS was initially thought to belong to a group related to the Great Comet of 1843 and C/1963 R1 (Pereyra).

Recent observations suggest it last visited the interior of our solar system between 1,700 to 1,886 years ago. And astronomer Zdenek Sekanina from NASA/JPL said it might be related to a comet seen in broad daylight in the year 363, from what is now Antakya, Turkey.

These ancient observations were documented by Greek and Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus.

Wait and see

The Conversation had this to say about Comet MAPS:

If it holds together, it might get bright enough to be visible in broad daylight. Even if that doesn’t happen, the SOHO spacecraft will provide great images of the comet.

In the days following perihelion, the comet will move into the evening sky. Thanks to its orbit, like all Kreutz comets it will be far easier to see from the Southern Hemisphere.

If the comet survives until perihelion, then fragments as it passes the sun, it could brighten suddenly and unexpectedly. A late break-up might therefore be the best-case scenario for a dazzling show.

Bottom line: The sungrazing comet C/2026 A1 (MAPS) is getting brighter! Some are calling it the Easter comet, because it will be at its best in early April.

Read more: The best comets of 2026: Here’s what to watch for

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