- Space
- Astronomy
- Comets
New images show the sungrazer comet C/2026 A1 (MAPS) did not survive its close approach to our home star. Instead, the celestial object briefly turned into a "headless wonder" before fully disintegrating.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.
The SOHO satellite saw comet MAPS enter the sun's atmosphere (left) before spewing out the other side as a cloud of debris.
(Image credit: NASA/ESA/SOHO)
- Copy link
- X
Get the world’s most fascinating discoveries delivered straight to your inbox.
Become a Member in Seconds
Unlock instant access to exclusive member features.
Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Want to add more newsletters?
Delivered Daily
Daily Newsletter
Sign up for the latest discoveries, groundbreaking research and fascinating breakthroughs that impact you and the wider world direct to your inbox.
Signup +
Once a week
Life's Little Mysteries
Feed your curiosity with an exclusive mystery every week, solved with science and delivered direct to your inbox before it's seen anywhere else.
Signup +
Once a week
How It Works
Sign up to our free science & technology newsletter for your weekly fix of fascinating articles, quick quizzes, amazing images, and more
Signup +
Delivered daily
Space.com Newsletter
Breaking space news, the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more!
Signup +
Once a month
Watch This Space
Sign up to our monthly entertainment newsletter to keep up with all our coverage of the latest sci-fi and space movies, tv shows, games and books.
Signup +
Once a week
Night Sky This Week
Discover this week's must-see night sky events, moon phases, and stunning astrophotos. Sign up for our skywatching newsletter and explore the universe with us!
Signup +Join the club
Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.
Explore An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletterA highly anticipated "sungrazer" comet is no more. Many experts expected the comet to shine so brightly that it could be seen in the daytime sky. Instead, the unfortunate object was ripped apart by a superclose "death dive" with our home star, which briefly transformed it into a "headless wonder" — a comet with no body, just a ghostly tail — stunning footage reveals.
The comet, dubbed C/2026 A1 (MAPS), was a member of the Kreutz sungrazers — a group of comets, likely leftover fragments from a massive exploded comet, that pass extremely close around the sun. Scientists discovered the comet in January and initially believed it was around 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) wide, but subsequent photos captured by the James Webb Space Telescope revealed that it was only around 0.25 miles (0.4 km) across.
You may like-
Rare 'sungrazer' comet MAPS could appear brighter than ever on Saturday: What to know
-
New 'sungrazing' comet could become visible to the naked eye during the day — if the sun doesn't destroy it
-
Dramatic death of Comet C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) caught on camera — Space photo of the week
On Saturday (April 4), comet MAPS reached its closest point to the sun, or perihelion, where it dipped into the sun's outer atmosphere, or corona, at a distance of just 100,000 miles (160,000 km) from the solar surface — around half the distance between Earth and the moon. The close encounter was not visible to astrophotographers, thanks to the comet's close proximity to our home star. But several space-based observatories captured the solar flyby.
It quickly became clear that comet MAPS did not survive its solar slingshot. Time-lapse images captured by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) show the bright comet streaking toward the sun and then emerging from the obscured solar disk as a plume of dust and gas — essentially, nothing but a tail.
The comet was likely destroyed by the intense thermal stress placed on its icy shell, or nucleus, as well as the high gravitational forces on the comet as it traveled at around 1 million mph (1.6 million km/h), according to Spaceweather.com.
"The comet went in, but only a cloud of debris came out," Spaceweather.com representatives wrote about the SOHO video footage. "RIP, comet MAPS."
Sign up for the Live Science daily newsletter nowContact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.The debris trails left over from comet MAPS, known as striae, briefly shone as a headless wonder. However, the debris quickly scattered, and there is now nothing left to see of comet MAPS, Live Science's sister site Space.com reported.
Luckily, comet MAPS is not the only highly anticipated comet that could be visible in April.
RELATED STORIES—City-size, cold-volcano comet transforms into a glowing 'snail shell' after major explosive outburst
—Farting comet seen reversing its spin for the first time ever — and it may soon 'self-destruct'
—Newly visible, city-size 'green comet' will soon be ejected into interstellar space — just like 3I/ATLAS
Later this month, another comet, C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS), will shine brightly as it reaches its perihelion on April 19. But unlike comet MAPS, this object will pass much farther from the sun — around 46.4 million miles (74.6 million km) — making it a much more reliable target for skywatchers armed with a decent telescope or a pair of stargazing binoculars. The best time to see it will be a few days before its close approach to the sun, when the new moon guarantees a dark sky.
Several experts previously predicted that comet PanSTARRS could be the "Great Comet of 2026." And given the death of comet MAPS, this suggestion now seems more likely to be correct.
Harry BakerSocial Links NavigationSenior Staff WriterHarry is a U.K.-based senior staff writer at Live Science. He studied marine biology at the University of Exeter before training to become a journalist. He covers a wide range of topics including space exploration, planetary science, space weather, climate change, animal behavior and paleontology. His recent work on the solar maximum won "best space submission" at the 2024 Aerospace Media Awards and was shortlisted in the "top scoop" category at the NCTJ Awards for Excellence in 2023. He also writes Live Science's weekly Earth from space series.
View MoreYou must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
Logout Read more
Comets
Dramatic death of Comet C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) caught on camera — Space photo of the week
Comets
NASA telescope spots the building blocks for life spewing out of comet 3I/ATLAS
Astronomy
Giant 'metal cloud' in nearby star system could be hiding an undiscovered sun
Comets
Scientists propose new plan to 'catch' comet 3I/ATLAS — but we have to act fast
Archaeology
Halley wasn't the first to figure out the famous comet. An 11th-century monk did it first, new research suggests.
Comets
'Interstellar messenger' 3I/ATLAS could be nearly as old as the universe itself, James Webb telescope observations reveal
Latest in Comets
Comets
How to see Comet PanSTARRS as it brightens in the night sky this week
Comets
Rare 'sungrazer' comet MAPS could appear brighter than ever on Saturday: What to know
Comets
'Farting' comet seen reversing its spin for the first time ever
Comets
'Interstellar messenger' 3I/ATLAS could be nearly as old as the universe itself, James Webb telescope observations reveal
Comets
Scientists propose new plan to 'catch' comet 3I/ATLAS — but we have to act fast
Comets
City-size, cold-volcano comet transforms into a glowing 'snail shell' after major explosive outburst
Latest in News
Space Exploration
There's an issue with the Artemis II heat shield, but NASA isn't worried. Here's why.
Reproductive Health
'No one knows what they are': Researchers discover new type of cell that's seen only during pregnancy
The Americas
16th-century silver coin discovered near Strait of Magellan marks the spot of a doomed Spanish colony
Climate change
Western states face above-normal wildfire threats this summer. New maps reveal which areas are most at risk.
Quantum Computing
Scientists create new type of encryption that protects video files against quantum computing attacks
Immune System
Keratin may act as a 'brake' for skin inflammation, pointing to potential treatments
LATEST ARTICLES- 1Scientists create new type of encryption that protects video files against quantum computing attacks
- 2There's an issue with the Artemis II heat shield, but NASA isn't worried. Here's why.
- 3Western states face above-normal wildfire threats this summer. New maps reveal which areas are most at risk.
- 4Science history: Doctor hypothesizes that 'transmissible proteins' can cause disease, contradicting a 'central dogma' of molecular biology — April 9, 1982
- 5'No one knows what they are': Researchers discover new type of cell that's seen only during pregnancy
