NASA has discovered an interstellar comet that’s wandered into our backyard.The space agency spotted the quick-moving object with the sky-surveying Atlas telescope in Chile earlier this week, and confirmed it was a comet from another star system.

Experts have confirmed that the mysterious object hurtling towards us, previously dubbed A11pl3Z, is an "interstellar object." The cosmic interloper, officially named 3I/ATLAS, is only the third of its kind ever seen — and will shoot past Earth later this year.

The comet is the third known interstellar object to pass through our solar system and is expected to make its closest approach to the sun in late October