Comet C/2025 R3 PanSTARRS: View from Canary Islands
Astrophotographer Marina Prol: "C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) Early morning on April 14th, we headed up to Ayagaures viewpoint, not too far from home in the south of Gran Canaria, to finally try and capture the comet of the moment after several failed early starts because of the clouds. These days it’s Dark Skies Week, so here’s one more reminder and a protest against excessive light pollution."
Discovered by the Pan-STARRS survey in September 2025, the comet is diving toward its closest approach to the sun (0.50 AU) on April 19, 2026, bringing it well inside the orbit of Venus. If current trends continue, the comet could brighten to magnitude +2, easily seen and photographed in the pre-dawn sky.
The comet's brightness will receive a further boost between April 24-25 when it passes almost directly between Earth and the Sun. The process is called "forward scattering." Sunlight passing through the comet's dusty atmosphere could be amplified 100-fold or more.
We will not be able to see the April 24 surge from Earth. The comet will be too close to the Sun. However, coronagraphs onboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) will have a great view of what could briefly become a truly magnificent object.
The Canary Islands, also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish region, autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are 100 kilometers (62 miles) west of Morocco and the Western Sahara. Gran Canaria, also Grand Canary Island, is the third-largest and second-most-populous island of the Canary Islands
Location: Gran Canaria, Canary Islands (Spain)
Release date: April 14, 2026
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