NASA has released a collection of new images showcasing the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, captured by an array of spacecraft throughout the solar system. This unprecedented observational campaign provides scientists with detailed views of only the third object confirmed to have originated from beyond our solar system.
Discovered on July 1, 2025, by the NASA-funded ATLAS telescope in Chile, comet 3I/ATLAS has been the subject of intense study. Its interstellar nature means it offers a rare glimpse into the composition and behavior of objects from other star systems, differing from comets native to our own solar system. The release of these images was delayed due to a recent government shutdown but now offers a wealth of data for analysis.
Multiple NASA missions contributed to the imagery released on November 19, 2025. From Mars, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, MAVEN, and the Perseverance rover captured close-up views as the comet passed within 19 million miles of the Red Planet in early October. These images reveal the comet’s fuzzy coma and, in some cases, a faint tail, with MAVEN’s ultraviolet data helping to analyze its chemical makeup.
Heliophysics missions like STEREO, SOHO, and the recently launched PUNCH satellites tracked 3I/ATLAS as it moved near the Sun, areas where ground-based telescopes cannot observe. These observations, conducted from September to October, helped characterize the comet’s brightness and tail dynamics during its solar approach, marking the first time such missions have purposefully observed an interstellar object.
Additional data came from spacecraft en route to other destinations. NASA’s Psyche mission, headed for a metal-rich asteroid, and the Lucy mission, destined for Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids, both imaged the comet from distances of millions of miles. These contributions aid in refining the comet’s trajectory and understanding its physical properties, such as the structure of its coma and tail.
NASA officials have emphasized that all evidence points to 3I/ATLAS being a natural comet, dispelling speculation about extraterrestrial origins. However, its interstellar pedigree makes it particularly valuable for research, as differences from solar system comets could reveal insights into the formation of other planetary systems. Scientists are eager to compare its characteristics with those of previous interstellar visitors, Oumuamua and Borisov.
The comet is set to make its closest approach to Earth on December 19, 2025, at a safe distance of 170 million miles. Future observations are planned with the James Webb Space Telescope and ground-based facilities, which may yield further details on its composition and origins. The European Space Agency’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter has already contributed images, and more data from NASA’s Deep Space Network is expected.
This comprehensive effort marks a significant step in interstellar object science, leveraging NASA’s diverse fleet to study a visitor from the cosmos. The data collected will enhance our understanding of how materials and processes vary across different star systems, paving the way for future discoveries about the universe’s diversity and history.
