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Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Flares in New Hubble and JUICE Views Ahead of Dec. 19 Flyby

New space‑telescope imagery confirms a vast coma with twin tails, sharpening plans for continued monitoring.

Overview

  • Hubble captured a 30 November ultraviolet image with WFC3 showing a coma about 120,000 kilometers across when the comet was roughly 286 million kilometers from Earth.
  • ESA’s JUICE spacecraft recorded views in early November from about 66 million kilometers using several instruments and its navigation camera.
  • Mission teams report post‑perihelion activity has intensified, with distinct plasma and dust tails visible in recent images.
  • Closest approach to Earth is expected on 19 December at around 270 million kilometers, with Hubble set to keep tracking the comet for months.
  • The solid nucleus remains unresolved and is estimated to be no larger than about 11 kilometers, as multiple space‑ and ground‑based observatories coordinate observations.