What Is 3I/ATLAS and Why Is It So Unique?

Astronomers have just discovered something truly astonishing: a comet named 3I/ATLAS that may be older than our entire solar system—possibly over 7 billion years old.
Spotted on July 1, 2025, it’s only the third interstellar object ever detected, and it’s likely the oldest comet we’ve ever seen. 3I/ATLAS

What Is 3I/ATLAS

Meet 3I/ATLAS: The Oldest Interstellar Comet Ever Discovered
Meet 3I/ATLAS: The Oldest Interstellar Comet Ever Discovered
Meet 3I/ATLAS: The Oldest Interstellar Comet Ever Discovered

Credit by: Filipp Romanov

Meet 3I/ATLAS: The Oldest Interstellar Comet Ever Discovered

What makes 3I/ATLAS unique is its suspected origin from the Milky Way’s thick disk—a region of ancient stars far above and below the galaxy’s main plane. Its steep trajectory and composition suggest it was born around a much older star and has been drifting through interstellar space ever since.

A Comet from the Milky Way’s Thick Disk?

Already showing signs of comet activity, 3I/ATLAS is rich in water ice and could help us understand the role of interstellar comets in seeding star and planet formation. It’s expected to become bright enough for amateur telescopes by late 2025.

What 3I/ATLAS Could Reveal About Star and Planet Formation

This historic find comes just as the Vera C. Rubin Observatory prepares for operations, and scientists now believe we may discover dozens more interstellar visitors in the coming decade.|

RESEARCH PAPER PREPRINT 📄
Matthew J. Hopkins et al, “From a Different Star: 3I/ATLAS in the context of the Ōtautahi-Oxford interstellar object population model,” arXiv (2025).

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