BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Brad Klein reviews upcoming astronomical highlights with Bethlehem’s "Backyard Astronomy Guy," Marty McGuire.
For November, we’re taking a look at comets.
One unusual "interstellar" comet, 3I/ATLAS has drawn attention from not just star-gazers, but also online UFO fans looking for clicks on social media.
“It’s a true interstellar comet that's speeding through our solar system originating from some other star in the Milky Way galaxy,” according to McGuire. “It's not part of our own solar system.”
But, he cautions, that does not mean that it’s a spaceship piloted by aliens.
In fact, the U.S. government shutdown contributed to just that sort of rumor and misinformation online. That’s because NASA took about a month to release its own photos and conclusions about the rare interstellar comet — only the third one ever detected.
When the space agency was back up and running, it held a news conference last week to share multiple photos of 3I/ATLAS from multiple scientific instruments, including one that is in orbit around Mars.
The associate administrator of NASA, Amit Kshatriya, attempted to hush any rumors that have been building online.
“This object is a comet," he said. "It looks and behaves like a comet."