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Space
Space
Science
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry

NASA exoplanet probe tracks interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS to gauge its spin

A streaking white comet moves to the left of the image with a boxout showing a floating metal spacecraft with two opposing solar panels in space.

NASA's planet-hunting TESS spacecraft recently caught a view of a very different kind of cosmic object: interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS.

During a special observation run from Jan. 15 to Jan. 22, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) repeatedly observed comet 3I/ATLAS as it headed out of our solar system. With its wide field of view, TESS recorded the comet as a bright, fast-moving dot dragging a faint tail across a crowded starfield.

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