Comet 3I/ATLAS, the third interstellar object ever detected, reached its closest point to Earth overnight from Thursday to Friday (Dec. 18 to 19), and it remains in a good viewing position tonight.

The interstellar comet will pass safely by Earth, giving astronomers their best chance to study it up close. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s ...

In 2017, we spotted our first ever visitor from another star system: 'Oumuamua. This bizarre object moved at impossible speeds, had a strange cigar shape, and behaved like nothing in our solar system.

The comet originated from outside our solar system and poses no danger to our planet. NASA officials have rejected theories that the object could be an alien spaceship. While not visible to the naked ...

Southwest Research Institute's novel Compact Dual Ion Composition Experiment (CoDICE) instrument aboard NASA's Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) spacecraft has successfully collected ...

A comet from another star system is due to make its closest—and final—approach to Earth this week before it continues on its journey back toward interstellar space. Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS will ...

A stray comet from another star swings past Earth this week in one last hurrah before racing back toward interstellar space. Discovered over the summer, the comet known as 3I/Atlas will pass within ...

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This image, provided by NASA, shows the ...

Scientists used the Gemini North telescope in Hawaii to obtain images of the third-ever detected interstellar object, Comet 3I/ATLAS, on Nov. 26, 2025. Credit: NSF NOIRLab In the spirit of the season, ...

ESA’s XMM-Newton space observatory has captured Comet 3I/ATLAS in X-ray light. This marks the first X-ray observation of the third interstellar object recorded in our Solar System. The observations ...

For months now, astronomers have been closely watching the mysterious interstellar object 3I/ATLAS as it rips through the solar system at a breakneck velocity. And before it finally leaves us for good ...

The comet is the 3rd interstellar object ever detected and got its name from the ATLAS telescope that discovered it. NASA officials have rejected conspiracy theories that the object could be an alien ...