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yesterday

ESA Mars Orbiter Captures Closest View of Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS

Scientists are leaning on spacecraft observations as they analyze disputed rover imagery and plan fresh looks once the comet rounds the sun.

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ai atlas glows green near mars
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An observation of 3I/ATLAS, captured by the Hubble Space Telescope.

Overview

  • ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter recorded a faint, fuzzy dot consistent with 3I/ATLAS’s coma during the comet’s Oct. 3 pass about 18.6 million miles from Mars, the agency’s closest view to date.
  • Mars Express attempted shorter exposures and its team is still mining data for a detectable signal, reflecting instrument limits when imaging a dim, fast-moving target at long range.
  • A Perseverance Navcam streak from Oct. 4 remains unconfirmed as 3I/ATLAS, with multiple analysts suggesting a long-integration or stacking artifact or a nearer object such as Phobos.
  • Public confirmation from NASA has been delayed during the U.S. government shutdown, though mission teams continue internal checks across rover and orbiter datasets.
  • 3I/ATLAS is the third confirmed interstellar object, posed no risk during its Mars flyby, will reach perihelion around Oct. 30, reenter ground-based view in early December, and is slated for ESA JUICE observations in November with data expected early next year.