The path of comet 3I/ATLAS through the solar system has been predicted with an accuracy 10 times greater than previous estimates, thanks to images taken by a European Space Agency spacecraft orbiting Mars. Though 3I/ATLAS poses no threat of striking Earth, the breakthrough could have important implications for defending Earth against other comets and asteroids someday.
The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) spacecraft observed 3I/ATLAS between Oct. 1 and Oct. 7 as it passed relatively close to Mars, with the comet's closest approach bringing it to within 18 million miles (29 million kilometers) of the Red Planet on Oct. 3. Up until September, calculations of the location and trajectory of 3I/ATLAS relied on observations made by Earth-based telescopes. Scientists did expect a modest improvement in the accuracy of locating 3I/ATLAS with the addition of Mars-based data, but this addition actually yielded a tenfold improvement.
