🌠 A visitor from another star just got photographed — and the image is stunning
For only the third time in recorded history, an object from outside our solar system is passing through — and this time, we were ready for it.
Comet 3I/ATLAS was first spotted in July 2025, screaming through space at 137,000 mph on a trajectory that could only mean one thing: it came from interstellar space, likely from the direction of the Milky Way's Galactic Center. Scientists believe it's been traveling for billions of years.
ESA's JUICE spacecraft — originally headed to Jupiter's moons — managed to photograph it from 66 million km away, revealing a glowing coma and a sweeping tail of gas and dust. Over 120 images were taken across multiple wavelengths. The data only arrived on Earth in February 2026, and researchers are still analyzing it.
Why does this matter? Unlike any comet born in our solar system, 3I/ATLAS carries material from another part of the galaxy entirely — a time capsule from a foreign star system. What it's made of could tell us how planets and comets form in places we'll never be able to visit.
Full findings are expected later in March. This story is just getting started. 👀
🔗 Read more → Scientific American