Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Nears Closest Earth Approach October 29

The interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, discovered in July 2025 by NASA's ATLAS survey telescope, is making a rare visit to our solar system and will make its closest approach to Earth on October 29, 2025, at a safe distance of about 1.8 astronomical units. It is the third known interstellar object, originating from another star system and possibly up to 10 billion years old, providing scientists a unique opportunity to study ancient material from beyond our solar system. Unlike typical comets, 3I/ATLAS has exhibited unusual features such as an intense emission of water vapor, a very long tail, and a glow ahead of it rather than a typical cometary tail, leading some researchers, including Harvard astrophysicist Dr. Avi Loeb, to speculate about its unusual nature, even joking about it being a "mothership" releasing probes toward Earth. Despite public curiosity and speculation, NASA has remained relatively silent on the object, largely due to a partial US government shutdown affecting some of its operations. The comet is expected to reach perihelion near the Sun on October 30 before exiting the solar system permanently. Observatories worldwide continue to monitor 3I/ATLAS, providing live tracking and updates to the scientific community and public.