The mysterious interstellar visitor 3I/ATLAS has emerged from behind the sun, now glowing in a way that has left scientists stunned.
The object made its closest approach to the sun on Wednesday, observed by three NASA spacecraft.
Data showed that 3I/ATLAS brightened at a rate about seven times faster than typical comets as it reached perihelion on October 29.
In other words, its light was increasing at an unusually rapid pace as it neared the sun.
Researchers involved with the observations published the study on Wednesday, saying: ‘The reason for 3I/ATLAS’s rapid brightening, which far exceeds the brightening rate of most Oort cloud comets at similar distances from the sun, remains unclear.’
Even more puzzling, the interstellar visitor now appears bluer, a reversal from its previously reddish hue, suggesting something beyond simple reflection is at play.
However, the team speculated that the blue glow likely comes from gas emissions, including carbon molecules (C2) and other compounds, rather than just sunlight reflecting off dust.
This is a developing story… More updates to come.
The object made its closest approach to the sun on Wednesday, observed by three NASA spacecraft. Data showed that 3I/ATLAS brightened at a rate about seven times faster than typical comets as it reached perihelion on October 29
In other words, its light was increasing at an unusually rapid pace as it neared the sun
The study, conducted by researchers from the Lowell Observatory in Arizona and the US Naval Research Laboratory in Washington DC, pulled data from the STEREO‑A (Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory) and SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory).
They also used the GOES‑19, a weather satellite carrying the CCOR‑1 coronagraph, which helped capture the comet’s brightness and color while it was hidden behind the Sun from Earth-based telescopes.
CCOR‑1 detected a glowing plume extending nearly 186,000 miles around the object, comparable to the carbon dioxide halo observed months earlier.
The team pulled data from a weather satellite, finding that 3I/ATLAS had a large, fuzzy cloud around it, called a coma, roughly half the width of the full moon.
