Zero Genie

Comet ATLAS, also known as C/2019 Y4 but nicknamed ATLAS as it was discovered by the telescope array system of the same name, was first discovered on March 5, 2019, and stunned the astronomy community as it was heading directly towards the Sun. After more than a year’s worth of travelling, the comet has only just made its way past Mars, but astronomers have confirmed that it is falling apart, bringing an end to its voyage.

It had been hoped the icy comet would hold out until it got close enough to the Sun that it would be as visible in the night sky as Venus, which looks like a bright star.

However, the latest observations have revealed that it has begun to fragment.

Astronomers believed it was crumbling apart as its brightness began to dip, which suggested it was not as big as first thought.

Astronomical photographs by Jose de Queiroz showed it was now in at least three pieces.

Researchers from the Lulin One-meter Telescope in Taiwan confirmed it was falling apart, with one fragment 3,400 km ahead of the trailing pair.

The team, led by Zhong-Yi Lin of Taiwan’s National Central University, wrote in the Astronomer’s Telegram: “Images on April 9 and 10 taken by the Lulin 40cm telescope (SLT) showed the appearance of a breakup event around the central nucleus.”

The images also suggest it will completely break-up by the time it reaches the orbit of Mercury at the end of May.

Zhong-Yi Lin said: “Follow-up observations of C/2019 Y4 (ATLAS), both imaging and spectroscopy, are highly recommended to investigate the cause of this cometary breakup event.”

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The comet itself is likely only a few kilometres wide, but its atmosphere has ballooned to a staggering 720,000 kilometres (447,387 miles) wide – about half as wide as the Sun.

This is because it is leaving a trail of gas and debris in its wake as it makes its way from the orbit of Mars, which it is near at the moment, past Earth and to Venus, if it makes it that far.

However, the fate of the comet is still unclear.

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Experts are unsure whether it will burn to dust or whether it will produce a spectacular display of explosions as it approaches the Sun.

Comet ATLAS was first discovered on March 5, 2019 and is what is known as a hyperbolic comet.

This means it has an exaggerated orbit which can go way out into the cosmos before swinging back around.