A mysterious visitor from deep space is causing such a stir that its behaviour is now being questioned on Capitol Hill. The object, 3I/ATLAS, has been exhibiting deeply strange characteristics as it passes through our solar system, baffling scientists and fuelling speculation that it may not be a simple comet.
The mystery has now officially escalated from scientific blogs to the halls of Congress. US Representative Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) is formally calling on NASA to share its unreleased data and images of the Manhattan-sized object. The 36-year-old Florida lawmaker shared a copy of her letter on X, which was addressed to acting NASA administrator Sean Duffy.
‘I write to request the release of specific observational data related to 3I/ATLAS, recently captured by NASA missions,’ Luna wrote. ‘This information is of great importance to advancing our understanding of interstellar visitors and their interaction with our solar system.’
The Baffling Behaviour of 3I/ATLAS
The official request stems from the comet’s increasingly bizarre behaviour, which has defied easy explanation. As 3I/ATLAS passed our sun, it exhibited signs of ‘non-gravitational acceleration,’ meaning something other than the sun’s gravity was pushing it. It also appeared ‘bluer than the sun.’
This strange behaviour led Harvard scientist Avi Loeb to speculate that the object could be propelled by an alien craft ‘engine,’ a claim that has met with both intense public interest and scientific scepticism. It is this speculation, and NASA’s perceived lack of transparency, that has prompted the congressional call for data.
The ‘Missing’ Mars Images of 3I/ATLAS
At the centre of the controversy are specific images that Loeb and Luna want to see. The lawmaker’s letter specifically called upon the space agency to release images that the HiRISE camera, aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, snapped between 2-3 October.
She also requested ‘supplementary data’ from that spacecraft, the Perseverance Rover, and ‘other Mars missions that may have detected unusual activity near Mars around or after October 3, 2025, when 3I/ATLAS passed within approximately 30 million kilometers (18.6 million miles) of the planet.’
The timing is critical. Coincidentally, Avi Loeb has publicly accused NASA of refusing to show him the HiRISE camera image snapped on 2 October.
Loeb suggested that this specific image could have provided evidence of the object’s non-cometary characteristics, such as a ‘tail’ that points toward the sun instead of away from it, which would be highly unusual.
Luna’s letter also encouraged NASA to fund new observations of 3I/ATLAS using the Juno mission near Jupiter to gain insights into its ‘composition, trajectory, and possible interaction with the solar environment.’
Kim Kardashian, NASA, and the 3I/ATLAS ‘Tea’
The congresswoman is not the only high-profile figure to publicly question the agency. Last week, Kim Kardashian asked NASA’s acting administrator Sean Duffy on X to spill the ‘tea’ on the interstellar entity.
NASA’s chief promptly responded to the businesswoman, posting, ‘Great question! @NASA’s observations show that this is the third interstellar comet to pass through our solar system. No aliens. No threat to life here on Earth.’
This quick, public denial to a celebrity apparently frustrated scientists like Loeb, who feel their own serious inquiries are being ignored. Loeb criticised Duffy in a blog post for responding to Kim, ‘a successful businesswoman,’ instead of a scientist.
In a follow-up post on Medium, Loeb praised Rep. Luna for her formal letter, writing, ‘We all owe a debt of deep gratitude for the visionary support displayed by Representative Luna to frontier science through her letter.’ In a final jab at the situation, he titled another entry, ‘Kim Kardashian is Welcome to Join my Research Team on 3I/ATLAS.’
NASA Responds: Rep. Luna Secures Briefing on 3I/ATLAS
Following the public letter and mounting pressure, Rep. Luna’s office has confirmed that NASA has officially responded. A spokesperson for the congresswoman announced that the space agency has agreed to provide a formal briefing for Rep. Luna and her staff regarding 3I/ATLAS.
This move is a direct response to the request for the HiRISE images from 2-3 October, which have been ‘hidden’ from the public—or at least, unreleased—for over a month, fuelling speculation.
While NASA has not made the images public, citing processing times or delays, this briefing signals that the agency is now formally addressing the concerns of both Congress and the scientific community. A date for the briefing has not yet been set, but it is expected to take place soon.
The mystery of 3I/ATLAS has officially escalated from scientific blogs to the halls of Congress. While NASA’s administrator was quick to dismiss ‘alien’ theories to a celebrity on social media, the agency is now formally accountable to Representative Luna’s request for transparency.
The upcoming briefing will be the first official answer to why the critical Mars images from October have remained unreleased for over a month.
Originally published on IBTimes UK
