"What's Up" From NASA and JPL for the Month of April, 2026
April 2026 brings us a very bright planet Mercury; the Lyrid meteor shower and a new PanSTARRS comet shines brighly.
Early in the Montth - The Planets
Mercury at Greatest Elongation:
The Solar System's innermost planet Mercury reaches its greatest elongation on the 3rd. "Greatest Elongation" means that the diminutive planet reaches its furthest didstance from the Sun, as viewed from Earth, on that date. This orientation makes viewing Mercury much easier, as the planet is visible for a longer period before the Sun rises or after it sets. This time, Mercury will be visible in the East before sunrise. The Red Planet Mars will be just below it.
Skywatching Highlights from April's episode.
The Lyrid Meteor Shower.
The nights of April 21st and 22nd will bring us the peak of the Lyrid meteor shower. The meteors in this shower are the leftover debris from Comet Thatcher. To view this shower, look east starting around 10PM. The radiant, or point where the meteors appear to originate is in the constellation Lyra, marked by the bright star Vega.
Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS)
On April 17, the new comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) will be at its brightest for viewing. It's closest approach to Earth occurs on the 27, when it will be around 44 million miles (70.8 million km) away. At its brightest on the 17th, it may brighted enough to be visible to the naked eye, but viewing it with binoculars would be better. You can find the comet in the pre-dawn eastern sky in the constellation Pegasus.
Watch "What's Up" for April, 2026 graciously provided by the fine folks at NASA and JPL.