Overview
- The Laboratory of Solar Astronomy at Russia’s Space Research Institute announced the discovery citing International Astronomical Union data.
- The object has been officially designated C/2026 A1 (MAPS) as the first comet logged in 2026.
- Orbital calculations predict the comet will fall into the Sun on April 4, 2026, after roughly 73 days from the announcement.
- Researchers consider it a probable fragment of the Great Comet of 1106 with ties to the 1843 fragment.
- The trajectory is sun-bound and being monitored for scientific observation, with no indications of any Earth-impact risk.