- READ MORE: Scientists baffled by 'interstellar object' spotted in the solar system
For the first time ever, a strange object from beyond our solar system has been photographed speeding through space. solar system .
First spotted by NASA On July 1st, researchers from across the globe have officially verified that this surprising newcomer has travelled through space from a distant star.
Officially titled 3I/ATLAS, the rare interloper is 12 miles (20km) long and hurtling towards the sun at 135,000 miles per hour.
Currently, utilizing a high-powered telescope at Hawaii The European Space Agency (ESA) has recorded the inaugural footage of 3I/ATLAS traveling across space.
As the short video shows, the object is extremely bright, which means it is either many times larger than any other interstellar object or has another source of illumination.
The majority of experts concur that the additional brightness stems from 3I/ATLAS being an active comet, generating a luminous "coma" made up of ice and gas as it draws closer to the Sun.
Nevertheless, a professor from Harvard argues that this is the case. may not have a natural explanation.
Harvard University physicist Professor Avi Loeb said to MailOnline: 'Should this object turn out not to be a comet, its unusual brightness would come as a major surprise and could possibly indicate an unnatural source, such as man-made illumination.'
The object 3I/ATLAS appeared as a dim dot of light when first observed by NASA’s ATLAS telescope—short for the Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System.
Since that time, both professional and hobbyist astronomers across the globe have rushed to collect additional information.
Researchers swiftly reviewed earlier data to uncover overlooked sightings of the object through a method known as precovery.
Combining these with hundreds of new observations, scientists were able to officially confirm that 3I/ATLAS was an interstellar object.
At a distance of 420 million miles (670 million kilometers) from Earth, the extraordinary velocity and path of 3I/ATLAS indicate that it was flung into our solar system after being expelled by another star.
NASA forecasts that it will come nearest to the Sun on October 30, coming within about 130 million miles (210 million kilometers)—just inside the orbital path of Mars.
Fortunately, the object does not pose any danger to Earth and will safely pass by at approximately 150 million miles (240 million kilometers) from our planet at its nearest approach.
It’s just the third occasion where researchers have successfully observed an interstellar body traveling through our solar system.
The initial one was 'Oumuamua in 2017, succeeded by Borisov in 2019.
When 'Oumuamua was initially observed, some unusual patterns in its rotation and speed led Professor Loeb and his colleague, Dr Shmuel Bialy, to propose that it might have originated from extraterrestrial sources.
Professor Loeb states: "‘Oumuamua displayed significant non-gravitational acceleration, which was unusual considering it showed no signs of outgassing."
Likewise, Professor Loeb currently proposes that 3I/ATLAS might also be an extraterrestrial spacecraft of a comparable kind.
Although specialists claim there is currently no proof backing this theory, certain scientists argue that we shouldn’t dismiss the chance entirely at this stage.
Professor Michael Garrett, who leads the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, said to MailOnline: "Certainly, more observations are required."
When asked if the object might be an extraterrestrial spacecraft, Professor Garret replied, "It's hard to say—it's possible—so we’ll need to take every kind of measurement available to evaluate each potential explanation."
It may not be likely, but that’s not reason enough to skip checking. Since our knowledge of interstellar objects remains limited, every new encounter helps us gain valuable insights.
Nevertheless, Professor Garret points out that there is presently no proof suggesting the object originates from an extraterrestrial source. He suggests instead that it’s probably "a frozen mass originating from another star system which happened to pass through our own Solar System."
At present, most available evidence strongly indicates that 3I/ATAS is a comet—a small celestial object composed primarily of frozen gases and ice.
Astronomers have observed a hazy cloud of gas and dust—referred to as a coma—encircling the object as solar heat causes it to emit material.
Taking into account these findings, both NASA and the European Space Agency have gained sufficient confidence to officially declare that 3I/ATLAS qualifies as an interstellar comet.
This also accounts for the brightness of 3I/ATLAS, as the materials within its coma reflect sunlight much more effectively than just bare rock or ice would.
Dr. Mark Norris, an astronomer at the University of Central Lancashire, said to MailOnline: "If it has a coma, then technically speaking, it’s classified as a comet since that indicates active outgassing."
This object is still relatively distant from the Sun, so logically, as it moves nearer, one would anticipate a larger cloud of debris forming around it. This will likely become evident with further observations in the coming days.
Nevertheless, when the comet arrives at its nearest position to Earth, it will be obscured by the Sun, requiring astronomers to delay their optimal viewing opportunities until it becomes visible again in December.
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