Last month, NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope spotted 3I/ATLAS, a comet about 178 million miles from Earth. It captured stunning images where the comet appeared as a bright dot against streaks of stars. NASA plans to continue gathering data on this comet as it travels out of the solar system.
On the same day, the European Space Agency shared new images of 3I/ATLAS. Their spacecraft, Juice, which is on its way to study Jupiter, snapped photos just before it got close to the comet on November 4, coming within about 41 million miles.
These images from Juice revealed exciting details. They showed a glowing halo around the comet, known as the coma, and suggested the presence of two tails. The first is the plasma tail, made of electrically charged gas, pointing upward. The second, the dust tail, consists of gas and tiny particles, stretching downwards.
The European Space Agency expects to collect more data from Juice’s instruments in February, promising even deeper insights into this intriguing interstellar visitor.
In recent years, interest in comets like 3I/ATLAS has grown. As more missions target such objects, researchers can learn about the building blocks of our solar system. A 2022 study highlighted that studying comets can help us understand the origins of water and organic materials on Earth. These findings could reshape our knowledge of how life began on our planet.
As more observatories track the comet, enthusiasts are sharing their excitement on social media. Platforms like Twitter and Instagram buzz with posts showing amateur-generated simulations of 3I/ATLAS, reflecting a collective curiosity about this cosmic traveler.
For continuous updates and detailed analysis, you can follow NASA’s official page. Comets like 3I/ATLAS inspire not just scientists, but anyone fascinated by the universe.
