Mysterious interstellar object aiming at Earth ‘not natural’ as scientists rule out comet theory

The appearance of a mysterious interstellar object has revived a debate on the question of whether extraterrestrial technology could hide in our solar system.

NASA detected the object, nicknamed 3i / Atlas, on July 1, causing a burst of scientific analysis to determine its origin.

While more than 200 researchers have concluded that it is probably a comet, the physicist of Harvard Avi Loeb raised doubts in a newly out-printed document, pointing a flagrant omission: 3i / Atlas has no visible tail.

“There were claims of a tail,” said Loeb, “but like 3i / Atlas accelerates and that its current size is not much greater than the angular resolution of terrestrial telescopes, it is not easy to avoid the fictitious lengthening of the image due to the movement of the object.”.

He also questioned the unusual lack of the object of gas emissions and its precise retrograde trajectory, which aligns well with the inner solar system.

Loeb has developed what he calls “the Loeb scale”, a classification system to assess the probability that an object is artificial, and gave 3i / Atlas one six out of ten.

It suggests that it is More likely not to be designed, although it has stressed that this score can change as more data becomes available.

Among his most provocative theories, Loeb suggested that the 3i / Atlas could be an extraterrestrial mother releasing small probes to intercept the earth.

The interstellar object (surrounded) would be a comet, but the astrophysicist of Harvard Avi Loeb maintains that he could be a foreign craftsmanship

“The most likely scenario from the point of view of engineering implies a mother vessel that releases mini-supports that make a reverse maneuver from Oberth to slow down to perihelion and intercept the earth,” wrote Loeb.

This type of maneuver uses the gravitational traction of the sun as close to the object to effectively adjust the trajectory, allowing probes to reach the earth without much fuel.

According to Loeb, these hypothetical probes could arrive between November 21 and December 5, 2025, on the basis of the expected position of 3i / Atlas behind the sun in October, an ideal window for a secret approach.

“It can come to save us or destroy us,” he said. “We would better be ready for both options and check if all interstellar objects are rocks.”

Chris Lintott, astronomer of the University of Oxford, rejected Loeb’s theory as “nonsense on stilts”, “calling it” an insult in the exciting work which understands this object “.

However, Loeb said that his analysis remains rooted in observation data.

His latest article, based on telescope readings on the ground between July 2 and 29, revealed colors of redness in 3i / Atlas, generally interpreted as surface dust or organic compounds.

He noted that the spectroscopic data of this and three previous studies show no sign of atomic or molecular gas in coma, a characteristic generally expected in comets.

Images of 3i / Atlas taken on July 4 and 29, 2025 show no sign of a comet tail. The arrows of the images indicate the directions of the sun, the north, the east and the way in which the object moves in the space

Although redness can suggest dust, this could also mean that the object simply has a naturally red surface, a bit like asteroids of type of or other ancient space rocks.

“Continuous monitoring around the periHelion is necessary to follow the changes of activity and color,” concluded the study “, which will give an overview of the evolution of interstellar materials under solar radiation.

Loeb is the author of four scientific articles on 3i / Atlas and recently proposed to use the Juno of NASA spacecraft to intercept the object near Jupiter in 2026, calling for this a rare opportunity for “interstellar archeology”.

He also thinks that governments should already train working groups, including scientists, decision -makers and even psychologists, to determine how to react and how to announce the news to the public without triggering panic.

If 3i / Atlas is more than a simple rock, he said, the earth is terribly prepared.

“The visitor,” he warned, “is already in our backyard”.

Even if the object turns out to be artificial, Loeb admitted that there was little humanity.

At nearly 60 miles per second compared to the earth, it moves far too quickly for our current rockets to reach.

The telescopes followed the course of 3i / Atlas while traveling our solar system in 2025 and 2026

Loeb has remained categorical that something 3i / Atlas does not add up. He said that his retrograde orbit, which means that she moves against the flow of the solar system, is strangely aligned on the way to the earth

“If the hypothesis that 3i / Atlas is a technological artifact is correct, there are two possible implications: either its intentions are entirely benign, or they are malicious,” said Loeb.

“In the first case, humanity has only to wait and to welcome this interstellar messenger with open arms. This is the second scenario that causes serious concerns.

He added that because the second possibility has serious consequences, we can use the idea behind Pascal’s bet.

“Blaise Pascal argued that it is smarter to believe in God because the possible advantages of believing are much more important than losses if you are wrong,” said Loeb.

“Likewise, in our case, it is logical to warn humanity of the risk of 3i / Atlas, even if it is only only theory.

“The cost of not warning could be much worse than the cost of evil.”