Watch On
Tune in on Nov. 18 to witness detailed telescopic views of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS as it races headlong away from the sun on an escape trajectory from our solar system, courtesy of a livestream hosted by the Virtual Telescope Project.
Comet 3I/ATLAS was discovered on July 1 earlier this year and was swiftly confirmed to be just the third interstellar object ever to visit our solar system, based on an analysis of its trajectory. The interstellar comet recently made its closest approach to the sun on Oct. 30 during an event known to astronomers as “perihelion” and has only recently emerged out from behind our parent star.
Virtual Telescope Project founder Gianluca Masi captured a stunning image of comet 3I/ATLAS on Nov. 11, which revealed the interstellar invader’s glowing central coma and lengthening smoke-like ion tail being carried away by the solar wind.
3I/ATLAS can currently be found rising above the eastern horizon in the hours directly preceding dawn in mid-to-late November, travelling through the stars of the constellation Virgo.
With an estimated magnitude (or brightness) of +10.9, 3I/ATLAS is too dim to be spotted by the naked eye, though a small backyard telescope will be capable of resolving its bright central coma as a fuzzy blob of diffuse light against the sharper points of the stars beyond.
Editor’s Note: This article was updated at 5:30 a.m. EST (1025 GMT) on Nov. 17 to reflect that the date of the livestream had been delayed to Nov. 18 due to poor weather.
Editor’s Note: If you would like to share your astrophotography with Space.com’s readers, then please send your photo(s), comments, and your name and location to spacephotos@space.com.
