‘Interstellar visitor’ 3I/ATLAS could be the oldest comet ever seen — and could grow a spectacular tail later this year
The mysterious “interstellar visitor” which has recently been spotted by whistling in the solar system can be about 3 billion years more than our cosmic district, suggests a new study. If it is confirmed, the extraterrestrial intrigue would be the oldest comet never seen from the earth. And, if the researchers think, he can also develop a spectacularly long tail in the coming months.
3i / Atlas is an interstellar comet, potentially up to 15 miles (24 kilometers) in diameter, which currently pulls towards the sun at more than 130,000 MPH (210,000 km / h). Once he passes his point closest to our star from the house, or Périhelion, at the end of October, the extrasolar entity will start his long journey back from the solar system, before finally leaving us forever.
Cosmic visitor was discovered on July 1 and was Confirmed as an interstellar object by NASA Less than 24 hours later. Since then, the astronomical community has been underway Discover as much as possible on the extraterrestrial comet.
In a new study, downloaded on July 7 on the preparation server arxiv and presented on July 11 at the Royal Astronomical Society National astronomy meeting In Durham, England, researchers used a computer model to simulate where 3i / Atlas can be from. The team noted that the comet probably comes from the “thick disc” of the Milky Way – a population of stars located above and below the main disc where the sun and the majority of the stars in our galaxy reside.
Most of the stars of this part of the galaxy would have billions of years more than our solar system, and because the comets are made up of the remains of the protoplanetary records that surround new stars, it is very likely that 3i / Atlas could be just as old.
In relation: Look at the recently discovered 3i / Atlas “interstellar visitor” head towards us in First Livestream
“Our statistical method suggests that 3i / Atlas is very likely to be the oldest comet that we have ever seen”, the main author of the study Matthew HopkinsA doctoral student at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, said in a statement. However, new discoveries have not yet been evaluated by peers, and other observations are necessary to determine exactly the age of the comet.
The study team used a new computer program, known as the ōTaTahi-Oxford model, which helps to predict where interstellar objects (ISO) come from the use of data from the GAIA Space Observatory from the European Space Agency.
Hopkins designed the model while working to finish his doctorate, and he had finished defending his doctoral thesis on the subject about a week before the discovery of 3i / Atlas, offering an immediate chance to put his theories to the test.
“It is a fantastic opportunity to test our model on something new and perhaps old,” said Hopkins.
Interstellar origins
Only two other ISOs have been discovered to date: 1i / ‘Oumuamua, a asteroid discovered in 2017; and 2i / Borisov, a comet spotted in 2019.
“ Oumamua and comet Borisov entered the sun’s solar system in the sun, compared to the trajectory of our star of the house through the Milky Way, alluding to what they come from the main disc of the galaxy. But 3i / Atlas arrives on us, which means that it has a completely different origin from the previous ISO.
“This is an object of part of the galaxy that we have never seen closely”, co-author of the study Chris Lintottsaid an astronomer at the University of Oxford, in the press release. “We believe that there is a two-thirds chance that this comet is older than the solar system, and that it derives from the interstellar space,” he added.
As we collect more data on 3i / Atlas, the researchers will continue to refine their model to identify more where the extraterrestrial input could have come. However, even then, there are limits to the precision of scientists with precision its interstellar origins.
“We will probably never be able to pinch it to a unique” “system” Aster TaylorA student graduated from the University of Michigan who was not involved in the new study, previously told Live Science.
A spectacular tail?
Understanding where 3i / Atlas comes from can also help researchers predict how it will behave when it will pass beyond the sun later this year.
Experts predict that planetary systems in the thick disc could have an abundance of water, which means that 3i / Atlas could be rich with water ice. If this is the case, this means that the comet could probably Cultivate a large cometary tail In the coming months, when the sun vaporizes its outer diapers, the researchers wrote.
The cloud of ice, dust and gas that surrounds the comet, known as Coma, could also become much larger, which allows it to reflect more sun and appear much more brilliant, which makes it even more visually surprising when approaching the earth.
However, the interstellar comet will not be visible to the naked eye, which means that you will need a decent backyard telescope or a pair of Star binocular To see it for yourself. The best time to see it will probably be at the end of 2025 and at the beginning of 2026, the researchers wrote.
