&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "3I/ATLAS update: Hera and Europa Clipper could soon enter interstellar comet's tail")
Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS will soon encounter two spacecraft on a journey towards a Jovian moon and an asteroid system. Photograph: (Gemini Observatory/ Chile)
3I/ATLAS update today: Another window to study the interstellar comet opens around October 25. Two probes travelling towards a moon of Jupiter and an asteroid system might tear through the comet’s tail and gather some data on it.
Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS flew by Mars in early October, and this was an opportunity to observe the visitor using the orbiters hovering over the Red Planet. Very soon, two more spacecraft will get extremely close to the comet. In fact, both of them could enter the comet’s tail, according to a new paper. These are NASA’s Europa Clipper and the European Space Agency’s Hera spacecraft that are en route to their destinations. While Europa is going to study Jupiter’s eponymous icy moon, Hera is travelling to the binary asteroid Didymos and Dimorphos. The authors stated that their paths are aligned in a manner that might take them through the interstellar comet’s tail. This event will take place right around the time 3I/ATLAS gets nearer to the Sun. It is expected to reach perihelion on October 29 and will reach peak activity because of its proximity to our star. The paper has been accepted for publication in Research Notes of the AAS.
3I/ATLAS arrival dates – Hera first, then Europa Clipper will encounter comet
Hera will be the first to poke through its ion tail between October 25 and November 1. The spacecraft might be able to gather some data on the tail of 3I/ATLAS, something that has been eluding the telescopes. Europa Clipper will encounter the comet between October 30 and November 6. “Europa Clipper has a rare opportunity to sample an interstellar object’s tail,” the authors wrote in the paper. Hera and Europa Clipper could help solve some of the mysteries surrounding 3I/ATLAS, as it has displayed several anomalies since its discovery on July 1. Besides these two opportunities, there will be one more man-made object in space peering at 3I/ATLAS. The European Space Agency’s Jupiter Icy moons Explorer (JUICE) will also be monitoring the comet in November. At this time, it won’t be visible from Earth since it will be on the other side of the Sun. But JUICE would have a great view of the alien comet. However, it will only relay information by February next year because of the equipment it uses to relay data.