Category: Comets and Asteroids
![Eimission spectra of 3I/ATLAS taken with BFOSC and YFOSC. For clarity, the full spectral range is divided into three panels with different vertical offsets to emphasize specific features. The left panel highlights emission lines of Ni i (blue dashed lines) and Fe i (red dashed lines), and the CN violet band (blue shaded). The middle panel shows molecular bands of C3 (green shaded), CH (orange shaded), and C2 (red shaded), and lists the heliocentric distance for each spectrum. The right panel displays the [O i] λλ6300, 6364 doublet (green dashed lines). -- astro-ph.EP](https://astrobiology.newspackstaging.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Postperihelion-Coma-Composition.png)
![[L] Close-up of a sample particle from asteroid Bennu. Credit NASA/Scott Eckley [R] The same particle analyzed with X-ray computed tomography scanning. This specimen shows the most common types of crack networks observed in Bennu samples. One has an extensive and connect framework of curved cracks, whereas the other has sparse, straight and flat fractures. Credit NASA/Scott Eckley](https://astrobiology.newspackstaging.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Asteroid-Bennus-rugged-surface.png)
![[Top] The boulder-covered moon Dimorphos as seen 8.55 seconds before the impact of the DART space craft. [Bottom] The same image after correcting for lighting conditions across the surface and shadows cast by boulders, revealing a fan-shaped pattern of streaks (highlighted in color for emphasis). Credit: NASA/JHU-APL/UMD.](https://astrobiology.newspackstaging.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/New-NASA-DART-Mission-Data.png)
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Meteorites & Asteroids, Missions & Hardware, Panspermia, Sample Return