A week and a half after its discovery, there are clues about the origin and age of the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS – and predictions about its composition.

Scientists now say an interstellar comet discovered earlier this month could be one of the oldest that astronomers have ever encountered.

A mystery interstellar object discovered last week is likely to be the oldest comet ever seen—possibly predating our solar system by more than 3 billion years, researchers say.