The Hubble Space Telescope and the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer are giving us stunning views of a rare interstellar comet called 3I/ATLAS. This comet, discovered in July while passing through our solar system, is especially interesting because it comes from outside our solar neighborhood.
What sets 3I/ATLAS apart is that it’s only the third interstellar object ever seen zipping through our solar system. Scientists are excited about its visit, directing missions to better understand its path and composition. In fact, they detected changes in the comet’s structure when it heated up during its close pass by the sun in October.
Hubble first captured 3I/ATLAS shortly after its discovery. It revealed a unique teardrop shape, allowing astronomers to study its features closely. On November 30, Hubble caught another glimpse from around 178 million miles away, providing clearer details of the comet.
Meanwhile, the European Space Agency’s Juice spacecraft is on its way to study Jupiter and its icy moons. It recently took an exciting image of 3I/ATLAS showing some activity around the comet. Juice will examine if moons like Ganymede and Europa could support life, as they might harbor oceans beneath their icy surfaces.
Juice launched in April 2023 and is set to reach Jupiter by July 2031, but it took the opportunity to observe 3I/ATLAS when it was about 41 million miles away. The spacecraft used multiple instruments, including its Navigation Camera, to capture fascinating images of the comet.
While most data from Juice will arrive on Earth by February 2024, the team got their hands on an initial image showing heat-driven changes on the comet. This image reveals a glowing halo of gas, known as a coma, surrounding the comet, along with two distinct tails: one of charged gas and another made of dust particles. This is typical for comets, which develop these features when they near a star.
3I/ATLAS will come within 167 million miles of Earth on December 19. However, it will be on the other side of the sun, so there’s no risk to our planet. For context, Earth is about 93 million miles from the sun. You can expect to see this comet through telescopes for a few months before it returns to deep space.
The upcoming data from Juice could provide insights into where this spectacle came from, potentially answering long-standing questions about interstellar objects. The excitement around 3I/ATLAS reflects a broader trend in astronomy, where researchers are uncovering more about our universe’s mysteries.
For more on space exploration and discoveries, check out NASA’s updates on their official website and stay tuned for the latest findings on 3I/ATLAS.
