More preprints (NOT officially reviewed journal papers) from arXiv.org:
Astrophysics > Earth and Planetary Astrophysics arxiv.org/abs/2602.12930
Paek, G. S. H. Im, M. Jeong, M. et al. Pre-perihelion Emergence of the CN Gas Coma in 3I/ATLAS Temporally and Spatially Resolved by the 7-Dimensional Telescope
[Submitted on 16 Feb 2026]
arxiv.org/abs/2602.12364
Martinez-Palomera, J. Tuson, A. Tess Science Support Center TSSC comet-centered data products from TESS 3I/ATLAS observations
[Submitted on 16 Feb 2026]
The colorfully named 7-dimensional telescope is a Korean astronomy asset. Here, it’s been used to track our interstellar interloper in time (light curve), color (spectrum), and imagery (two more- spatial- dimensions). In particular, the volatile cyanogen (CN) is a telling indicator of comet activity. A lightweight molecule, it outgasses easily once the comet warms past its sublimation temperature.
TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite), on the face of it, looks unimpressive. Its aperture(s) is only ~100 millimeters, smaller than many telescopes of amateur astronomers. But TESS carries four of them, with wide fields of view each, and the platform sweeps the sky over the course of a year. TESS is also unbothered- not even a little- by terrestrial issues such as light pollution, dust and haze, unsteady air, the arrival of moonlight, or even daytime. TESS then gives us an unblinking eye on the skies. Here, we see the assembled data on ATLAS from the TESS archives.