Given its speed, orbit, and timing, 3I/ATLAS could only be studied remotely, using JWST, ground telescopes, Mars orbiters, and pre-discovery observations. Interstellar objects like this are scientifically priceless, but with today’s propulsion limits, we can observe them, not visit them. To physically reach one in the future, humanity must build faster spacecraft and keep them waiting in advance, long before the next interstellar visitor arrives.
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