Astronomical intruder Comet 3I/ATLAS carries water ice possibly antedating Earth's existence
The study of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS has revealed fascinating insights into its age, origin, and composition, setting it apart from comets formed within our solar system.
**Age**
Estimates suggest that 3I/ATLAS is over seven billion years old, making it significantly older than the solar system, which is about 4.5 billion years old. This means that 3I/ATLAS predates our sun and planets by more than two billion years, potentially making it the oldest comet ever detected.
**Origin**
Unlike typical solar system objects, 3I/ATLAS is believed to originate from the Milky Way's thick disk, a galactic population of ancient stars that orbit above and below the thin galactic plane. This origin region is different from thin disk stars that formed the sun and planets.
**Composition**
The comet is thought to have a high water mass fraction, which is unusual and might become observable shortly. This composition differs from many solar system comets and supports the idea that 3I/ATLAS formed under different conditions in the early galaxy.
**Trajectory and Size**
Discovered by the ATLAS telescope and initially tracked by the Zwicky Transient Facility, 3I/ATLAS's strong hyperbolic orbit confirms that it is just passing through the solar system and will not return. Observations show that 3I/ATLAS originated from the direction of the Sagittarius constellation and will have a closest approach to the Sun at about 1.4 astronomical units (inside Mars’s orbit).
**Additional Findings**
3I/ATLAS shows a coma, a nebulous envelope of gas and dust that surrounds comets. Some scientists estimate there could be as many as 1 million interstellar visitors in the solar system at any one time.
Comet 3I/ATLAS was discovered by the ATLAS survey telescope on July 1, 2020. The team, led by Matthew Hopkins of the University of Oxford, is awaiting complementary data from other teams using large telescopes like the Very Large Telescope and the Keck Observatory. The goal is to combine these spectra to confirm the ice detection and to search for gas emissions as the object approaches the sun.
In summary, 3I/ATLAS is an ancient, interstellar comet from the Milky Way's thick disk with a composition rich in water, distinct from solar system comets, providing a rare glimpse into the materials and conditions present in the early universe before the solar system formed.
- The discovery of 3I/ATLAS has opened up opportunities for further research in the field of science, especially in understanding the age and origin of objects beyond our solar system.
- With its unique composition rich in water, 3I/ATLAS could potentially influence the study of health-and-wellness, as this comet's water might hold clues about the early universe's chemical ingredients that could have contributed to the origin of life on Earth.
- As fitness-and-exercise enthusiasts look up at the stars, they now have evidence of a celestial body from another galaxy traveling through our solar system, adding an element of space-and-astronomy to their workout motivation, reminding them of the vastness of the universe and their place within it.
