The first image of comet 3I/ATLAS captured by the Juice probe has been revealed

During its journey to Jupiter, the Juice probe, launched in 2023, has taken images of the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, and ESA recently unveiled a first glimpse. This allows us to see this celestial object differently and to dispel certain theories. 

Indeed, when it was discovered, there was much speculation about it. Some astronomers, including Avi Loeb, believed that it was an alien spacecraft traveling through our solar system. While this may seem surprising, this discovery was significant, particularly because of its unusual behavior and its origin.

Thus, after several studies, we know that this interstellar object is a comet, with an icy core surrounded by a halo of gas and dust and a tail. And all these elements are visible in the image provided by the Juice probe.

Located about 66 million kilometers from comet 3I/ATLAS, the probe took more than 120 images with its camera, named Janus. In this image, the comet appears as a white dot at the center, and its tail is also visible. Another image shows this object with irregular edges. In addition, the probe also studied this stellar object with its five instruments in order to learn more about its composition. And scientists are currently studying these images to obtain new results.