Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS is visiting us this year
Astronomers have spotted comet 3I/ATLAS, a visitor from outside our solar system, cruising by us this year.
Even though only three such interstellar objects have been officially found so far, scientists think there are actually hundreds of millions of trillions to a trillion trillion drifting through the galaxy!
No risk of collision with Earth
3I/ATLAS will swing closest to the Sun on October 30, 2025, just inside the orbit of Mars.
The good news: it'll stay at least 270 million kilometers away from Earth, so there's zero risk of a collision.
Learning more about these cosmic travelers
NASA's Hubble and James Webb telescopes (plus ground observatories) are busy figuring out what this comet is made of and how big it really is—somewhere between 320 meters and over five kilometers across.
Every bit they learn helps us understand more about these cosmic travelers.
Search for more interstellar visitors
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory is about to ramp up the search for interstellar visitors like this one.
Over the next decade, we could spot dozens more—and maybe even get a peek at what other star systems are made of!