Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS is back! What to know
The interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS has made a reappearance in our night sky. First discovered in July, this visitor from beyond our solar system swung closest to the Sun on October 29.
Although astronomers don't yet know its exact size, it is active, indicating an icy nucleus and coma.
It races through space at a mind-blowing 221,000km/h.
Will it hit us?
Don't worry, it won't get anywhere near us—the closest it'll come is about 150 million miles away (well past Mars), so Earth is totally safe.
As it zipped by the Sun, the comet brightened up and changed colors, putting on quite a show for astronomers.
How to see it
3I/ATLAS glows green thanks to carbon molecules reacting with sunlight.
If you're hoping to catch a glimpse: its tail seems "invisible" from Earth because it points directly away from us—but you can still track it using even a small backyard telescope (about six inches across).