In just a few days, an enigma from the far reaches of the cosmos will make its closest approach to Earth, offering a final, fleeting glimpse before it vanishes into the void forever.
The visitor is 3I/ATLAS, only the third interstellar object ever detected within our solar system. Unlike the celestial wanderers we are accustomed to, this high-speed traveller is defying conventional wisdom, sparking a fierce debate that pits mainstream astronomy against the boldest of extraterrestrial theories.
Discovered in July 2025, 3I/ATLAS is currently hurtling through our neighbourhood at speeds exceeding 150,000 mph. While most astronomers have categorised it as a pristine, albeit unusual, interstellar comet, others see something far more provocative.
At the heart of the storm is Harvard astronomer Avi Loeb, who argues that the object’s list of ‘anomalies’ is now too long to ignore.
The 0.5 Percent Mystery: A Freak of Nature or Design?
The latest point of contention stems from a new letter published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics, detailed by a team of astronomers using the Two-meter Twin Telescope in Tenerife.
Between July and September, they detected a ‘wobbling high-altitude jet’ emanating from the object’s nucleus. This Sun-facing ‘anti-tail’ is curiously aligned within less than eight degrees of the object’s rotation axis.
According to Avi Loeb’s calculations, the probability of such a specific alignment occurring by chance is a staggering 0.5 percent. This orientation allows 3I/ATLAS to maintain a steady ‘dayside’ and ‘nightside’—a configuration that seems almost too perfect for a natural rock tumbling through space.
‘If not for that special alignment,’ Loeb noted, ‘the anti-tail jet towards the Sun would have been oriented at a much larger angle.’ In simpler terms, a typical comet would likely show much more ‘wobble’.
For Loeb, this suggests a level of precision more commonly associated with a technological spacecraft using thrusters to maintain stability or mitigate the risk from space debris.
Interstellar 3I/ATLAS: A Catalogue of Celestial Curiosities
The strange alignment is merely the fourteenth entry in Loeb’s growing list of concerns. Since its discovery, 3I/ATLAS has displayed several features that have left the scientific community scratching their heads.
Its trajectory is almost exactly aligned with the orbital plane of our solar system’s planets—a striking coincidence for an object arriving from deep space.
Furthermore, observations from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope have revealed an unusually high concentration of carbon dioxide ice and a gas plume rich in nickel, yet conspicuously lacking in iron.
In his more provocative moments, Loeb has compared this to industrial nickel alloys. He suggests the ‘Sunward jet’ might not be a natural outgassing of ice at all, but a beam designed to clear a path of micrometeorites.
After reaching its perihelion—its closest point to the Sun—on 29 October, the mystery deepened. Rather than fading, the Sunward anti-tail persisted, suggesting a new source of energy or material was being tapped.
While mainstream critics, including astrophysicist Brian Cox, remain firmly in the ‘natural comet’ camp, they acknowledge that the data is fascinatingly unique.
As 3I/ATLAS makes its closest approach on 19 December 2025, observatories around the globe are on high alert. This is our final opportunity to study the object’s spectroscopic signature.
Whether it is a ‘cryogenic fossil’ from another star system or something far more intentional, 3I/ATLAS has ensured that, for a few days at least, the world is looking up and wondering if we are truly alone.
Originally published on IBTimes UK
