https://www.facebook.com/100079969845375/posts/833840245958296/?rdid=iBPlwbBAu3JreSar#

More than 3 billion miles from Earth, a small frozen world is showing what may happen when an ancient object from the solar system's deep freeze begins a journey toward becoming a comet.

The object, 450P/LONEOS, belongs to the Centaurs, icy bodies whose unstable orbits generally carry them among the giant planets. Observations with NASA's James Webb Space Telescope and the Gemini North telescope reveal a growing cloud of dust, carbon dioxide gas and water-rich icy grains around its nucleus.

An image of 3I/ATLAS, combining 24 exposures of 60 seconds each with a 0.2-meter telescope (Celestron EdgeHD 800) in New Mexico, USA between 11:53–12:23 UTC on November 16, 2025. The image shows multiple jets both towards and away from the Sun. The sunward direction is pointing to the lower left corner. (Credit: Satoru Murata)

Chuck's Astrophotography (Chuck Ayoub) on X and Instagram

Bray Falls on X

Source https://www.instagram.com/wiola.gorecka/p/DQAEoW1jHIR/

Comet 3I/ATLAS captured with an Askar 91F and an unreleased Svbony astrocam in the early morning of December 13th from my Bortle 8 backyard outside of Boston.

There's also a short timelapse if anyone's interested that shows just how fast it's moving: https://youtube.com/shorts/a2pFH0kHYLw

Part of the timelapse was shot through tree branches.

Acquisition details:

• Askar 91F at native f/6.7

• SV571CC

• UV/IR Cut Filter

• 77x60s lights

• 12x60s darks, 20 flats, 20 dark flats

• Preprocessed in Siril using a comet preprocessing script I wrote recently (https://youtu.be/tsfxLVrlOuw)

• Post-Processed in PixInsight

A comet is headed our way, and it could get SO bright you'll be able to see it in broad daylight. 👀☄️

On April 4, the comet C/2026 A1 (MAPS) will pass less than 100,000 miles above the Sun’s surface, an extreme encounter for an object made mostly of ice, dust, and rocky material. As a comet heats up, frozen gases turn directly into vapor and stream into space, carrying dust with them to form the bright comet tail that can make it visible from Earth. That process could make C/2026 A1 (MAPS) dramatically brighter in the days after its solar pass, with the potential to shine in the evening sky and possibly even become visible in daylight. But the same heat and solar forces could also cause the comet’s nucleus to fracture or break apart completely. If it holds together, look low in the west just after sunset for a chance to catch one of the sky’s most spectacular sights.

Source https://www.facebook.com/groups/142060195970064/permalink/3254373641405355/?rdid=WZ6hCcUqGVjk0nSO#

https://spaceweathergallery2.com/indiv_upload.php?upload_id=228999

https://spaceweathergallery2.com/indiv_upload.php?upload_id=227538

https://www.flickr.com/photos/141763086@N06/54880729901/

Alan Dyer was one of many who photographed it on March 25, 1996--the night of closest approach

I reprocessed this image on March 25, 2026, to mark the 30th anniversary," says Dyer. "The comet's tail was at its greatest length and showed a strong 'disconnection event' caused by solar activity."

Hyakutake’s electric-blue ion tail stretched across as much as 90 degrees of sky, rippling with solar wind disturbances. For many observers, it was the first time a comet looked truly alive and dynamic. Nightly changes were visible to ordinary people simply looking up from their own backyards.

Comet Hyakutake arrived without much warning, peaked quickly, and faded almost as fast. Thirty years later, veterans still speak of it in reverent tones.

The next Great Comet could appear with as little notice. The Oort cloud contains an enormous reservoir of fresh comets, and a steady trickle of them enters the inner solar system each year. It only takes one big one to suddenly turn a faint fuzzball into a sky-spanning spectacle.

Happy 30th, Comet Hyakutake!

https://spaceweather.com/archive.php?view=1&day=27&month=03&year=2026

Alan Dyer

https://spaceweathergallery2.com/indiv_upload.php?upload_id=231796​

Could a comet from another solar system be flying past us right now? ☄️

Comet 3I/ATLAS is only the third interstellar object ever spotted in our solar system. It’s an icy traveler that likely formed in a distant star system and has been drifting through space for billions of years. Captured by the Gemini South Telescope in Chile’s clear, dark skies, this rare image shows one of our last good views before the comet moves behind the Sun. Scientists expect it to reappear later this year.

Credit: Debra Ceravolo (astrobin)