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6h ago

Astronomers Confirm Third Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Passing Through Solar System

The comet’s hyperbolic trajectory carries it at 137,000 mph inside Mars’ orbit on October 30 without ever coming closer than 1.6 AU to Earth.

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The comet 3I/ATLAS moves against a backdrop of stars. The ATLAS survey telescope in Rio Hurtado, Chile, was the first to report that the object came from interstellar space.
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Overview

  • First detected by NASA’s ATLAS survey telescope in Chile on July 1 and traced back to June 14 archival images, 3I/ATLAS now has a precisely calculated orbit.
  • It is only the third interstellar object recorded after ‘Oumuamua in 2017 and 2I/Borisov in 2019, highlighting the rarity of such visitors.
  • Scientists are coordinating ground-based observatories to monitor its brightness and composition as it nears perihelion, with potential brightening into late October.
  • The comet will become unobservable when it approaches the Sun in September, then reemerge in December for additional study before heading back into interstellar space.
  • Its passage offers a unique opportunity to sample material from another star system and will inform future detection efforts like the Vera Rubin Observatory and ESA’s Comet Interceptor mission.