A stunning new image of interstellar comet 31/ATLAS has revealed that its once-vanished ion tail has dramatically reappeared — and is now longer, brighter, and more structured than ever before.
The new observation, captured by the Virtual Telescope Project, adds a surprising twist to the unfolding story of this rare interstellar traveler.
A Rare Glimpse of an Interstellar Visitor
The image, taken at 11:31 p.m. EDT on Nov. 10 (0431 GMT on Nov. 11), consists of 18 long-exposure frames captured by robotic telescopes in Manciano, Italy.
Despite the comet’s low position — only 14 degrees above the horizon — and interference from a 61% illuminated Moon, the resulting photo shows a sharply defined and luminous ion tail stretching across the sky.
🔗 Related links:
- New interstellar object 3I/ATLAS — Everything we know about the rare cosmic visitor | Space
- Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS’s tail is still growing, new image shows
- 3I/ATLAS: Interstellar Comet Speeds Up, Turns Blue, Loses Tail, Leaves Experts Stumped
Initially: 3I/ATLAS Loses Its Tail
Earlier in the comet’s journey, astronomers were baffled when 3I/ATLAS appeared to lose its tail entirely after passing near the Sun.
Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb noted that about 13% of the comet’s mass “should appear as a tail, but no such tail is visible.”
