Earlier this year, astronomers spotted a mysterious interstellar object, dubbed 3I/ATLAS, hurtling through the solar system at a blistering speed.

It's only the third confirmed interstellar object to have ventured into our solar system — all over the past few years, owing to more sophisticated space-observing technology — and scientists are eager to have a closer look.

Besides detailed observations by the Very Large Telescope in Chile and NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, Harvard astronomer and alien hunter Avi Loeb called on using the space agency's Juno spacecraft to intercept the object's path to get a first-hand look.

Loeb, who made headlines last month after suggesting 3I/ATLAS may be an alien probe sent by an intelligent civilization, argued in a blog post that the "close encounter o

See Full Page