Six Spacecraft Cameras On Comet Atlas As It Flies By Mars Today!

James Kaufman, World News Report Today. Comet 3I Atlas has reached its Mars close approach. Interstellar Comet 3I Atlas is approaching Mars for a close encounter on October 3rd, which is today, already in some parts of the world. Mars fleet is ready. We're about to get our best ever look at an interstellar comet, says physicist T. Marshall Eubanks from Space Initiatives Incorporated, who is helping coordinate the International Spacecraft Teams. As many as six spacecraft could get a close-up view. NASA's MAVEN, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The European Space Agency's Mars Express and their ExoMars trace orbiter, the UAE's Hope probe, and China's Tianwen-1, because 3I Atlas is now invisible from Earth as it swings behind the sun, a blackout that will last until December. Martian spacecraft. They provide the only high-quality spectra and images of the comet at its brightest. How convenient the fleet at Mars could deliver the definitive data set needed, writes Eubanks and colleagues, who authored a new study urging space agencies to seize this huge opportunity as the comet passes Mars today, October 3rd, UTC time. It will be almost bright enough to see with the human eye, about a magnitude 6.7, according to Eubanks. If only humans were there to see it, spacecraft will have to do all the work. Comet will be 0.195 AU, or 29 million kilometers, from the red planet, giving the orbital fleet a ringside seat. Out of all the cameras involved, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's HiRISE will deliver the sharpest images, 29 km per pixel. HiRISE should resolve the comet's atmosphere and coma questions with more than 850 pixels. Researchers will be on the edge of their seats to see if the camera can also glimpse at the nucleus hidden within the gas cloud. Photographing the core could put to rest the internet rumors that it's an alien ship. For Eubanks, getting the maximum amount of data is a labor of love. Quote, I've worked on this very intensively since July, says Eubanks. As my wife would tell you, we have no funding source for this, just us. Let the observing begin, he yelled. so ladies and gentlemen we have the atlas coming in for a closer approach to mars just outside of mars orbit then it gets into the inner solar system i will show you where earth's going to be at that time period and today we're at number two right here so we know exactly where it is when When we pick it up, there's our juice satellite that's going to be moving around. And going to be parallel to its orbit. This is going to be more than an interesting situation. So the Earth orbits much faster than Mars around the Sun. And, well, it's on the other side of the solar system now. The comet should come through just through this area here. Make a very close approach to Venus and Jupiter on its way out. Promises to be, well. Very interesting, especially if we're able to pick it up with a naked eye after it passes behind our sun. God bless you and yours, folks. Please share and subscribe. Always remember, anything's possible. Bizarro world.