Can you tell the difference between a meteor — also called a “shooting star” — and a comet? Before sunrise on Tuesday, April 21, is when to test your observing skill when comet C/2025 R3 (Pan-STARRS) appears low on the eastern horizon — just as the Lyrid meteor shower approaches its peak. Although an early start is required, this is one of the last opportunities to get outside and see a comet with your own eyes. Check my feed for the latest on comet Pan-STARRS.
Comet Pan-STARRS, also known as comet C/2025 R3 (Pan-STARRS), is now visible before sunrise. (Image shows 2020's Comet NEOWISE).
getty
Comet C/2025 R3 (Pan-STARRS) is visible from about an hour before sunrise until early next week — a very brief window. An unobstructed view of the eastern horizon is crucial.
On Tuesday, April 21, the comet is in the constellation Pisces and is getting ever lower in a brightening pre-dawn sky. The best way to find it is by locating the Great Square of Pegasus, a shape of four bright stars rising in the east.
The Lyrid meteor shower peaks overnight on April 21-22, producing around 15-20 meteors per hour under dark skies. The Eta Aquarid meteor shower began on April 19 and will peak overnight on May 5-6.
The comet looks like a faint, diffuse glow with a tail that moves gradually night after night. By contrast, a meteor is a streak of light lasting only a second or so.
According to the Comet OBServation database, the comet is currently shining at around magnitude +4.7 — right on the cusp of being a naked-eye object in very dark skies. However, it will likely require binoculars for most observers.
It was discovered by the Pan-STARRS survey in Hawaii in September 2025 and is thought to orbit the sun roughly every 170,000 years.
Although finding the comet is becoming challenging, it should still be bright enough to see on Monday, April 20. Here’s how to see it:
The position of comet C/2025 R3 (Pan-STARRS) 60 minutes before sunrise on April 21, 2026.
Stellarium
The comet reached perihelion on Sunday, April 19, and is now moving away from the sun at about 0.52 AU (78 million kilometers) by Tuesday, April 21. It continues to close in on Earth at around 00.53 AU (79 million kilometers), with its closest approach on Monday, April 27 (though by then it will be impossible to see from the Northern Hemisphere). Observers in the Southern Hemisphere will be able to spot the comet from late April, after the comet passes perihelion, just after sunset on the western horizon.
The Lyrids are one of the oldest known meteor showers, caused by Earth passing through debris left behind by Comet Thatcher. The best time to watch is after midnight and in the pre-dawn hours, when the radiant point near the bright star Vega climbs higher in the sky. The best time to watch will be early on Wednesday, April 22.
Check my feed for a daily “comet tracker” with sky charts and tips for finding Comet Pan-STARRS.
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