3I/ATLAS Still Showing Strange Protrusion as It Approaches Earth

"The interstellar object 3I/ATLAS is expected to make its closest approach to Earth mere days from now, coming within just 167 million miles - a significant gulf, but a mere stone's throw on the cosmic scale. It's an exciting moment that'll give astronomers an unprecedented chance to point both ground- and space-based telescopes at the unusual visitor. They've been following the object, which is broadly believed to be a comet, for months now as it screams through the solar system."

"Judging by the "thousands of images" taken since Hubble's July observations, which show 3I/ATLAS' anti-tail, Loeb argued that it's "not a perspective effect," but a "real physical jet." "Its nature is a mystery because gas and micrometer-dust particles are expected to be pushed away from the Sun by solar radiation pressure and the solar wind, creating the appearance of a tail - as routinely seen in solar-system comets," Loeb wrote."

Interstellar object 3I/ATLAS will approach within 167 million miles of Earth, offering extensive observation opportunities with ground- and space-based telescopes. Observations since July reveal a prominent anti-tail that points toward the Sun rather than away, persisting more than a month after perihelion. One proposed mechanism invokes enhanced mass loss on the Sun-facing side that liberates larger, slower-moving fragments less susceptible to solar radiation pressure, allowing accumulation on the Sun-facing side. Thousands of images show the anti-tail consistently, indicating a physical jet rather than a perspective artifact. The anti-tail remains puzzling because gas and micrometer-scale dust are expected to be pushed away by solar radiation and the solar wind.

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