A newly discovered comet, designated C/2026 A1 (MAPS), is poised to make a potentially spectacular, though brief, appearance in the April 2026 skies, but its survival hinges on a perilous journey around the sun. Discovered on January 13, 2026, by a team of French astronomers – Alain Maury, Georges Attard, Daniel Parrott, and Florian Signoret – using a 0.28-meter telescope in Chile, the comet is a member of the Kreutz group, known for its sun-grazing orbits.
The comet’s discovery at a distance of 2.056 Astronomical Units (AU), or approximately 307.6 million kilometers from the sun, was notable, marking a record distance for the detection of a sungrazing comet. Initial observations suggested a nucleus potentially 2.4 kilometers in diameter, indicated by its faint +17.8 magnitude at that distance. The MAPS team, which has also discovered 318 Near-Earth asteroids, making it a leading European program in the field, identified the object while conducting routine observations.
C/2026 A1 (MAPS) will reach perihelion – its closest approach to the sun – on April 4th, passing within an estimated 487,088 miles (783,892 km) of the sun’s surface. This is remarkably close; the sun’s diameter is 865,370 miles (1,392,678 km). The comet’s trajectory will take it to within 160,000 kilometers (99,000 miles) of the sun’s surface, well within the solar corona, and less than half the distance between the Earth and the Moon.
The fate of the comet remains uncertain. Sungrazing comets often disintegrate due to the intense heat and gravitational forces near the sun. However, Comet Lovejoy (C/2011 W3) survived a similarly close encounter in 2011, putting on a visible display afterward. The comet’s path will take it through the constellation Pisces in early April, and This proves currently located in Fornax the Furnace, moving towards Eridanus and then Cetus.
Astronomers predict the comet could reach a magnitude of +10 in late March, potentially becoming visible with binoculars. If it were to brighten significantly, reaching a magnitude of -7, it might even be visible to the naked eye during daylight hours, though this is considered a less likely outcome. The planet Venus will serve as a helpful guide for locating the comet in the western sky during its approach to the sun.
Following its closest approach to the sun, C/2026 A1 (MAPS) is expected to make its closest approach to Earth on April 5th, at a distance of 0.129 AU. The comet will then transit in front of the Sun as seen from Earth on April 4th, between 13:55 and 15:20 UT. Observations during this period will be best conducted using the Solar Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), which will have the comet within its field of view starting April 2nd at 20:50 UT, and within its inner view on April 4th at 01:51 UT.
Should C/2026 A1 (MAPS) survive its solar encounter, it will continue its journey outward, eventually reaching a distant aphelion 220 AU from the sun in the 32nd century. Currently, another comet, C/2025 R3 PanSTARRS, is also being tracked and is expected to reach perihelion on April 19th, potentially reaching a magnitude of +2.
