Overview
- Ground-based teams captured the first post-perihelion images on October 31, led by Qicheng Zhang using the Lowell Discovery Telescope.
- NASA reports a hyperbolic, unbound trajectory at more than 210,000 km/h, confirming the object will exit the Solar System.
- Closest approach is expected in December, with some outlets citing December 19, though it will remain far beyond lunar distance and not be visible to the naked eye.
- Observers note a strikingly blue appearance, and early reports of unusual chemistry are being investigated and have not yet been validated.
- Designated 3I/ATLAS after its July discovery by the ATLAS survey in Chile, it is the third confirmed interstellar object after 'Oumuamua and Borisov, prompting coordinated follow-up observations.