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Loeb Demands NASA Release Comet Images Amid Funding Allegations
NASA, ESA, and multiple spacecraft observed interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS at perihelion, revealing unexpected rapid brightening and unique chemical composition, advancing understanding of interstellar objects.
- During perihelion on October 29, 2025, NASA and ESA spacecraft are tracking Comet 3I/ATLAS, which reached perihelion at about 1.5 million km from the Sun.
- The third interstellar object, 3I/ATLAS, prompted an observation campaign due to its hyperbolic orbit and high speed after ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter observed it on October 3, 2025, from about 19 million miles away.
- Imaging and spectroscopy revealed a diffuse coma and dust tail with substantial carbon dioxide, nickel-vapour emission lines, and an estimated width of about 3.5 miles.
- Because 3I/ATLAS is behind the Sun, any perihelion-driven changes can be measured only after solar conjunction and re-emergence in late November, while a preprint noted Europa Clipper might intersect the ion tail between October 30 and November 6 amid a U.S. federal government shutdown.
- Looking beyond perihelion, 3I/ATLAS will approach Earth around 19 million km on December 19, 2025, offering insights into interstellar chemistry and its estimated age ~3 billion years.
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NASA spacecraft reveal interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS brightened rapidly as it swooped behind the sun
Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS is briefly out of view as it travels around the sun this week, but researchers and amateur astronomers used spacecraft data to track its progress right up until perihelion.
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Total News Sources106
Leaning Left13Leaning Right10Center27Last UpdatedBias Distribution54% Center
Bias Distribution
- 54% of the sources are Center
54% Center
L 26%
C 54%
R 20%
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