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Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Might Be the Oldest Object Ever Seen in Our Solar System, a Study Suggests
Key takeaways
- An image of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS captured by a telescope in Hawaii International Gemini Observatory / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / B.
- Now, a team has determined that the comet may have formed as far back as 12 billion years ago, making it about three times the age of our solar system and nearly as old as the universe.
- 3I/ATLAS might be “the oldest object to have been observed in our solar system,” says study co-author Martin Cordiner, an astrochemist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, to the Agence France-Presse’s Daniel Lawler.
An image of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS captured by a telescope in Hawaii International Gemini Observatory / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / B. Bolin Image Processing: J. Miller & M. Rodriguez (International Gemini Observatory / NSF NOIRLab), T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage / NSF NOIRLab), M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab) Our latest known interstellar visitor, comet 3I/ATLAS, is currently making its way out of the solar system, after passing by the sun late last year. Scientists have been racing to study the rare guest with the glimpses they’ve gotten via ground- and space-based telescopes.
Now, a team has determined that the comet may have formed as far back as 12 billion years ago, making it about three times the age of our solar system and nearly as old as the universe. The findings were published in the journal Nature on June 22.
3I/ATLAS might be “the oldest object to have been observed in our solar system,” says study co-author Martin Cordiner, an astrochemist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, to the Agence France-Presse’s Daniel Lawler.