Interstellar comet came from a much different solar system than ours
6 hours ago
- #Astronomy
- #Interstellar Comet
- #Deuterium Detection
- Astronomers used radio telescope observations to study interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, revealing insights into its formation time and location.
- The comet, discovered in July and exiting our solar system in December, has deuterium levels over 40 times Earth's oceans and 30 times Solar System comets.
- Findings suggest it formed in a cold environment below 30 Kelvin, possibly up to 11 billion years old, and from the outer part of a protoplanetary disk.
- ALMA telescope enabled detection of deuterated water, indicating the comet's unusual composition and providing clues about early Milky Way conditions.
- Interstellar objects like 3I/ATLAS act as time capsules, helping researchers understand planetary system formation and galactic history.