Comet 31/Atlas Caught By Portland, Oregon Man On Its Way Out

Published 01/03/26 at 8:25 a.m.
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection Staff

(Portland, Oregon) – The comet 31/Atlas has left the building. (Photo of Comet 31/Atlas, courtesy Patrick Finney)

Well, almost. And it's our regional space that it's heading out of rather than any building.

The mysterious comet trekked its way this summer through our solar system, from some distant place beyond it, and racking up the honor of being only the third extra-solar visitor we've encountered. Its actual size is still – if you'll pardon the pun – up in the air a bit.

It was discovered back in the summer and now it's on its way out after making a bit of a show in late December.

Most photos of the interstellar interloper really came from larger telescopes, although some started to come from smaller smart telescopes in November.

Patrick Finney

Yet one Portland, Oregon man caught one good shot of it right at the beginning of the new year. Practically from his backyard. Patrick Finney has managed to snap a few interesting stellar objects in recent years. Oregon Coast Beach Connection featured his shots of comet Lemmon and comet KT / Atlas. This one – though a tad blurry – is especially spectacular. You can almost feel the thing whizzing away.

How did Finney capture these? Using a ZWO SeeStar S50.

“This is a smart telescope, meaning it has GPS tracking, and can find the object you want to see,” Finney said. “It also has edit features and filtering, to enhance imagery. All imagery is viewable on your cellphone via SeeStar’s downloadable app.”

He said it's quite compact and works well with deep space objects.

It wasn't easy. He only caught it in one photo and it managed to show the separation of the nucleus and tail, Finney said. There's not a lot of photos that show that.

31/Atlas was at its closest approach to Earth back on December 19, at 270 million km or 1.8 AU.

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope reobserved interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS Nov. 30, with its Wide Field Camera 3 instrument. Image Credit: NASA, ESA, STScI, D. Jewitt (UCLA), M.-T. Hui (Shanghai Astronomical Observatory). Image Processing: J. DePasquale (STScI)

“Comet 3I/ATLAS is the third object in history from outside of our solar system to be discovered within our solar system,” NASA said.

NASA reported the discovery this summer, made via the ATLAS (Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System) survey telescope in Rio Hurtado. Then it was about 420 million miles away, named 31/ATLAS, having come from the direction of the constellation Sagittarius.

31/ATLAS was mostly only visible with powerful telescopes – and unfortunately something the Pacific Northwest and areas along the Washington or Oregon coast weren't able to see with the naked eye.

Yet Finney in Portland, Oregon, caught it on its way into “the black” - as one legendary sci-fi show put it.

STEREO-A (Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory) spacecraft. The colorization was applied to differentiate the image from other observing spacecraft images. NASA/Lowell Observatory/Qicheng Zhang

Now that the comet is heading back out from the Sun, its velocity is slowing as expected under the Sun’s gravitational influence. It had sped up considerably as it approached, but by the time it exits the solar system, it will be moving at essentially the same speed it had upon arrival.

NASA scientists say that as the comet approaches the Sun, rising temperatures cause its ices to sublimate and release gas. This outgassing can introduce minor forces that produce very small shifts in its path. It seems to be doing just as they predicted.

Oregon Coast Hotels in this area - South Coast Hotels - Oregon Coast Vacation Rentals - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours

 

 

Lincoln City Rentals Company Offers Quite the Price Drops: Oregon Coast Early...
A1 Beach Rentals has a 30-percent reduction. Hotel reviews, Lincoln City hotel reviews, Lincoln City lodging

Where Primeval Forest Vibes Meet Oregon Coast Sands at Twin Tierra Del Mar Re...
This pet friendly set of dreamy homes exemplifies the teensy burgh's best. Lodging reviews, hotels

A1 Beach Rentals - in Lincoln City
Lincoln City Hotel Reviews: Substantial rate reduction all rentals (50 percent) - click on site.

Raucous Oregon Coast View in Lincoln City or Depoe Bay Spotlighted in May
Some of these sights cost a little less through mid May. Depoe Bay hotel reviews, Lincoln City hotel news

More About Oregon Coast hotels, lodging.....

More About Oregon Coast Restaurants, Dining.....

Washington Coast / Oregon Coast Articles (stories are random: hit reload to see different articles)

Central Oregon Coast's Glass Float Drops Mellow a Bit: Special Drop Dates Fewer in '26
Bringing the Lincoln City events back to their roots

Newport Gets Rescue Copter Back After Lawsuit, Still Fighting ICE Dentention Facility
The move would have left the closest helicopter rescue 100 miles away. Safety

Mussel Gathering Closed Again on S. Oregon Coast After Biotoxins Found
Paralytic shellfish toxin found Cape Blanco to Brookings. Marine sciences

Rather Large Magnitude 6.0 Quake Off South Oregon Coast, No Tsunami Threat
Happaning about 7:30 p.m. almost 200 miles from Bandon. Marine sciences

This Week's Oregon / Washington Coast King Tides: What It Brings, What It Doesn't
No large waves expected, but still interesting conditions in both states. Weather

Vacation Rentals Just Got Cheaper on N. Oregon Coast: Season Lows Around Pacific City
Some major specials at places to stay around Neskowin, Pacific City, Tierra Del Mar. Pacific City hotel reviews, Pacific City specials

Oregon / Washington King Tides Misconceptions: Not Always a Supermoon Involved
Not the same as high wave events, don't always include a supermoon. Astronomy

Oregon Coast Traffic Work: Astoria, Depoe Bay and a Different Part of Highway 6
Astoria-Megler Bridge next year, Depoe Bay and OR 6 now

Back to Oregon Coast

Contact Advertise on Oregon Coast Beach Connection
All Content, unless otherwise attributed, copyright © Oregon Coast Beach Connection. Unauthorized use or publication is not permitted