In an extraordinary astronomical event, the Chinese Mars orbiter Tianwen-1 has captured the first close-up images of Comet 3I/Atlas as it made a close flyby of the Red Planet in October 2025.

The images, which sparked initial speculations about an "alien spaceship," reveal a bright yet faint cometary nucleus enveloped by a glowing coma, offering new insights into this rare interstellar visitor.

Comet 3I/Atlas, only the third confirmed interstellar object to pass through our Solar System, was first discovered on July 1, 2025, by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) in Chile.

Tianwen-1 Mars orbiter successfully observed the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS in early October at a distance of ~29 million km, CNSA has just announced. https://t.co/3hOObkuZV1 https://t.co/H

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