If you’re standing in your backyard right now wondering where is comet tonight, you aren't alone. Honestly, 2026 is starting off as a bit of a mixed bag for stargazers. We just came off the massive hype of Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS and that weirdly bright Lemmon comet last year, so the bar is high. Right now, there isn't a "Great Comet" blazing a tail across the sky that you can see while walking the dog.
But don't go back inside just yet.
There are actually a few icy travelers hanging around, including a literal visitor from another star system. You just need to know exactly which direction to point your binoculars.
The Best Bet: Comet 24P/Schaumasse
The most reliable object to find tonight, January 14, 2026, is 24P/Schaumasse. It’s a periodic comet, which basically means it's a regular visitor that comes around every 8 years or so. It reached its "peak" brightness a few days ago on January 8, but it's still hanging out at around magnitude 8.0.
For the non-experts: that’s too faint for your naked eye, but it’s a total "gimme" for anyone with a pair of 10x50 binoculars or a small backyard telescope.
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Where to Find It
Look toward the constellation Virgo. If you're in the Northern Hemisphere, Virgo is a "late-nighter." It starts rising in the east-southeast late in the evening and gets to a decent height in the sky during the predawn hours.
Specifically, you want to find the star Vindemiatrix (it’s a yellow giant star, pretty easy to spot). The comet is currently drifting through the patch of sky just a few degrees away from it. In a telescope, it won't look like a long, glowing spear; it’s going to look like a small, fuzzy green cotton ball.
The Interstellar Weirdo: 3I/ATLAS
This is the one the scientists are actually geeking out over. 3I/ATLAS is only the third interstellar object we’ve ever seen—following in the footsteps of 'Oumuamua and Borisov. It’s moving way faster than "normal" comets because it isn't bound by our Sun’s gravity. It’s just passing through.
It’s currently in the constellation Cancer, moving toward Jupiter.
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Here's the catch: it’s faint. Really faint. We're talking magnitude 16. If you have a standard set of binoculars, you probably won't see it. However, if you have one of those new "smart" telescopes (like a Seestar or Unistellar) or you’re into long-exposure astrophotography, this is your target. It’s currently passing near the Beehive Cluster (M44).
Seeing an object that originated from another star system is a "once-in-a-lifetime" thing. Or, well, a "thrice-in-a-lifetime" thing if you’ve been paying attention since 2017.
Why Comets Are So Annoying to Predict
Comets are basically "dirty snowballs." When they get close to the Sun, they heat up and vent gas. Sometimes they grow a massive tail. Sometimes they just... crumble.
Earlier this year, we were all watching C/2024 G3 (ATLAS). People thought it was going to be the "Great Comet of 2025/2026." It got incredibly bright for people in the Southern Hemisphere, reaching negative magnitudes, but then it basically "died." It got too close to the Sun and fragmented. Tonight, it’s just a ghost—a diffuse trail of debris that’s fading fast as it retreats into the outer solar system.
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Looking Ahead: The Big One in April
If you’re disappointed that you can't see anything without gear tonight, mark your calendar for April 2026.
There is a new player on the field: C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS).
Right now, it’s still way out between Mars and Jupiter. But the math suggests that by late April, it could reach magnitude 2.5 or 3. That’s bright enough to see from a suburban backyard without any equipment at all. It’ll be sitting in the constellation Pisces, rising just before dawn.
How to Successfully Spot a Comet Tonight
Don't just walk out and look up. You’ll fail. Follow these steps instead:
- Check the Moon: Tonight, the Moon is a waning crescent, which is actually great news. It’s not bright enough to wash out the faint fuzzies.
- Get an App: Download something like Sky Tonight or Stellarium. Search for "24P" or "3I/ATLAS." These apps use your phone's GPS to show you exactly where to point.
- Avert Your Vision: This is a pro-tip. When looking through binoculars at a faint comet, don't look directly at it. Look slightly to the side. The edges of your eyes are more sensitive to light than the center. The "fuzz" will pop out much better.
- Dark Skies Matter: If you’re under a streetlamp, forget it. Drive twenty minutes out of town. The difference between "city sky" and "country sky" is the difference between seeing a gray smudge and seeing a comet's coma.
What You Should Do Next
Grab your binoculars and head out around 3:00 AM or 4:00 AM. That’s when Virgo (and 24P/Schaumasse) is highest in the sky. If you’re a photographer, point your camera toward the Beehive Cluster in Cancer to see if you can catch the interstellar 3I/ATLAS. Even if you don't see the "big one" tonight, seeing a rock that traveled light-years to get here is worth the cold air.
Stay updated on the April 2026 brightness curves for C/2025 R3, as that is the next real chance for a naked-eye spectacle.