3I/ATLAS is an interstellar object whose activity provides critical insights into its composition and origin. However, due to its orbital geometry, the object is too close to the Sun near […]
Comets and Asteroids
Posted inBeta Pictoris, Comets and Asteroids, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Transit Distances And Composition Of Low-velocity Exocomets In The β Pictoris System
β Pictoris is a young nearby A5V star, about 20 Myr old, embedded in a prominent debris disc. For the past 40 years, variable absorption features have been observed in […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
SPHEREx Re-Observation of Interstellar Object 3I/ATLAS in December 2025: Detection of Increased Post-Perihelion Activity, Refractory Coma Dust, and New Coma Gas Species
In December-2025, the NASA SPHEREx spacecraft re-observed ISO 3I/ATLAS post-perihelion, finding a much more active object compared to August-2025 SPHEREx pre-perihelion observations, with marked evidence for development into an cometary […]
Posted inComets and Asteroids, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Status Report, Stellar Cartography
A Nomenclature For Individual Exocomets
With recent observational advancements, exocomet studies have entered a new era: we have moved from an epoch where exocomets’ signatures were analysed to identify their true nature to a new […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Functionalization Of Benzene Ices by Atomic Oxygen
Small aromatic molecules, including functionalized derivatives of benzene, are known to be present throughout the different stages of star and planet formation. In particular, oxygen-bearing monosubstituted aromatics, likely including phenol, […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Dust Properties of the Interstellar Object 3I/ATLAS Revealed by Optical and Near-Infrared Polarimetry
We present independent polarimetric observations of the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS, including the first near-infrared polarimetric measurements. Using imaging polarimeters, we measured the degree of linear polarization from the visible RC […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Comets and Asteroids, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Intelligence & Language, Interstellar, SETI & Technosignatures, Status Report
Breakthrough Listen Observations Of 3I/ATLAS With The Green Bank Telescope at 1-12 GHz
3I/ATLAS (also designated C/2025 N1 (ATLAS) and, formerly, A11pl3Z) is the third interstellar object (ISO), following 1I/‘Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov, to be discovered during a passage through the Solar System. The […]
Posted inAstrogeology, Comets and Asteroids, Icy Worlds, Missions & Hardware, Status Report
Considerations On The Process Of Target Selection For The Comet Interceptor Mission
Comet Interceptor is an ESA science mission with payload contributions from ESA Member States and with an international participation by JAXA. It is the first mission that is being designed, […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release
University Of Canterbury Team Led Study Of Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS
The comet 3I/ATLAS, discovered by an international team in July this year, is only the third interstellar object ever found in the history of astronomy. It is the first that […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
The Evolution in Coma Molecular Composition of Comet C/2017 K2 (PanSTARRS) Across the H2O Sublimation Zone: ALMA Imaging of an H2O-Dominated Coma
We report a survey of molecular emission from cometary volatiles using the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA) toward comet C/2017 K2 (PanSTARRS) carried out on UT 2022 September 21, 22, […]