A newly-discovered ‘great comet’, expected to be one of the brightest of 2026, will streak across the sky with its highest visibility on April 17. First seen in September, the long-period comet, officially called Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS), is making its way through the inner solar system.

Comet C/2025 R3

The viewing window for the space object is from mid-April through early May, with its highest visibility on April 17 due to the new moon, which will darken skies and make the comet brighter. The comet will pass near the Sun, which sometimes brightens comets by releasing gas and dust to form the glowing tail commonly associated with “great comets”. Other comets, however, remain faint or disintegrate when passing by the Sun.

According to Space.com, the early projections for Comet R3 range from a magnitude of 8 to 2.5. A magnitude of 8 means that stargazers will require a small telescope or binoculars to see the comet, while a magnitude of 2.5 means it would be bright enough to be seen by the naked eye in dark locations.

A dark location away from city lights will be the best location to spot the comet, allowing 20 minutes or so for your eyes to adjust to the darkness with no screens. The comet’s exact visibility and position will change nightly, so stargazing apps or live trackers like TheSkyLive are useful tools to help you know where to look.

Comet R3 will make its closest approach to the Sun in late April. It’s expected to be a morning object for viewers in the Northern Hemisphere, so it can be seen right before sunrise. After this period, viewing will shift in favor of the Southern Hemisphere after sunset into early May, when the comet is predicted to be visible low in the western sky. Viewing conditions may be impacted on and after May 1, however, due to the full moon.