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When astronomers spotted an interstellar object flying toward the center of our solar system, it got most experts understandably excited. This is just the third known interstellar object ever seen, and each one gives scientists the opportunity to learn more about the universe around us.
This object, which has been named 3I/ATLAS, has been the focus of a lot of attention from both professional astronomers and amateur enthusiasts. Avi Loeb is a Harvard astronomer who is well known in the field, and early on, he suggested that it is possible that the object is actually an alien spacecraft. This is based on the fact that it has an unusual shape, and it is traveling faster than experts would expect.
As the object continues to get closer to us and more information is gathered, he has doubled down on this possibility due to the fact that astronomers have spotted a light coming from it. This light, it seems, is being generated by 3I/ATLAS rather than just being a reflection of light from the sun or another source.
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Loeb wrote a blog post on this in which he talked about why he doesn’t think that this is a comet, which is the most common opinion by other astronomers.
He explains that there is, “no evidence for a bright cometary tail in the opposite direction.”
Comets typically have long tails made of dust and other things that are ejected from them while rocketing through space. He went on to point out two possibilities for what he thinks it could be based on what has been seen so far:
- It could be a “rare fragment from the core of a nearby supernova that is rich in radioactive material”
- Or, it is a “spacecraft powered by nuclear energy, and the dust emitted from its frontal surface might be from dirt that accumulated on its surface during its interstellar travel.”
Either way, this would be a remarkable opportunity since both of these would be unique in what we have seen from our studies of space so far. Interestingly, however, Loeb says that it being a fragment from a supernova would be highly unlikely and that the evidence better points toward it being a craft (or other object) powered by nuclear energy.
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While Loeb is known for making some controversial claims and predictions in the past, he is still a very respected astronomer. When the object passes closest to Mars in October of this year, he has encouraged NASA to use its Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to get the best pictures and analysis possible. He says that they were receptive to this idea:
“This morning, I encouraged the HiRISE team to use their camera during the first week of October 2025 in order to gather new data on 3I/ATLAS. They responded favorably.”
Whether this proves that it is an alien spacecraft or rules out this possibility, it will definitely provide Loeb and other astronomers with a treasure trove of information about this object, which will undoubtedly be studied for years.
If you thought that was interesting, you might like to read about a quantum computer simulation that has “reversed time” and physics may never be the same.