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Space
Space
Science
Paul Sutter

Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS survived its flyby of the sun — and gave up some secrets in the process

A white light of the comet 3I/ATLAS is surrounded by a blue glow against a black background.

Imagine a visitor from beyond our cosmic neighborhood. Not just from the next street over, but from an entirely different star system, a place we can only dream of reaching.

These ancient wanderers, like comet 3I/ATLAS, are cosmic time capsules. They carry the elemental fingerprints of other stellar nurseries, offering a rare glimpse into the primordial ingredients that built worlds far, far away. Humanity wants to know the universal recipe for planet formation, and these interstellar objects are the closest we get to a direct taste.

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