Overview
- The third confirmed interstellar visitor hit perihelion around 11:47 UT on October 29 at roughly 1.4 AU from the Sun on a one‑time, hyperbolic path.
- NASA and other agencies say it poses no threat, staying about 1.6–1.8 AU from Earth with the closest pass expected around December 19.
- Earth-based viewing is paused by solar conjunction and the comet remains too faint for the naked eye, with reappearance expected in early December.
- Reported spectral oddities include a CO2‑rich coma, cyanide and atomic nickel vapor, which teams are investigating and have not yet confirmed through peer review.
- Hubble, JWST, VLT, Keck and ESA’s JUICE are contributing observations, while claims of an artificial origin remain unsubstantiated and outside the scientific consensus.