On Monday, October 28, the comet evaporated as it headed toward perihelion, the closest point in its orbit to the sun. There were previously hopes that the comet, officially designated C/2024 S1 (ATLAS), could become a “Halloween present” visible to the naked eye, but these were ultimately just wishful thinking; astronomers had already begun observing the cosmic snowball that began to disintegrate earlier this month.
Now, thanks to the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), a spacecraft jointly operated by NASA and the European Space Agency, we know with certainty how and when Comet ATLAS disappeared.
An animation showing the final moments of comet C/2024 S1 (ATLAS) as it flew toward the sun on October 28, 2024. (Image credit: ESA/NASA SOHO)
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