There has been much hype and discussion surrounding 3I/ATLAS since it was first spotted in our Solar System back in 1 July 2025.
Unlike the vast majority of comets we observe from Earth, which originate from the outer edges of our Solar System, 3I/ATLAS is an 'interstellar visitor'.
That means it was born out in deep space, it's temporarily passing through our Solar System, and will eventually exit our Solar System.
It's one of only three such bodies known, the other two being 1I/ʻOumuamua, discovered in 2017, and 2I/Borisov, discovered in 2019.
And among some (minority) voices at least, there's discussion as to whether interstellar visitors like this could in fact be extra-terrestrial technology.
Of course, such ideas are refuted by the vast majority of scientists, who point to clear observations showing that 3I/ATLAS is indeed a comet.
3I/ATLAS is recognised by astronomers and scientists, including NASA and the European Space Agency, as well as the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) that discovered it, as being an interstellar comet.
Yet Harvard scientist Avi Loeb is one prominent voice well known for addressing the idea that objects like ʻOumuamua and 3I/ATLAS could be behaving like some sort of extra-terrestrial technology.
It's worth pointing out that Loeb's comments remain refuted among the vast, vast majority of science circles, and there's as yet no direct evidence that objects like 3I/ATLAS are indeed anything other than comets.
In a blog posted on 18 August 2025, Avi Loeb makes some pretty outlandish claims.
3I/ATLAS could be producing its own light?
In the blog post, Loeb looks to the recent Hubble Space Telescope image of 3I/ATLAS.
"The image shows a glow of light, likely from a coma, ahead of the motion of 3I/ATLAS towards the Sun. There is no evidence for a bright cometary tail in the opposite direction," he writes.
"This glow was interpreted as evaporation of dust from the Sun-facing side of 3I/ATLAS."
After analysis of the light emitted by 3I/ATLAS, as described in a science paper published on 20 August 2025, Loeb then writes:
"The simplest interpretation is that the nucleus of 3I/ATLAS produces most of the light."
And:
"3I/ATLAS could be 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.
"This cannot be ruled out, but requires better evidence to be viable."
He continues:
"This leaves us with the interpretation of the brightness profile around 3I/ATLAS as originating from a central light source. Its potential technological origin is supported by its fine-tuned trajectory."
What's more, Loeb argues the data could be interpreted as showing that "3I/ATLAS could in fact comparable size to the previous interstellar objects 1I/`Oumuamua or 2I/Borisov."
Of course, these are just snippets from a larger blog post drilling down into the possible sources of the object's light.
The full post breaks down Loeb's interpretation of the data on 3I/ATLAS collected by the Hubble Space Telescope.
Naturally, Loeb's comments surrounding these interstellar objects draw much discussion and debate online, from those both agreeing and disagreeing with his analyses.
Penn State astronomer Jason Wright – who BBC Sky at Night Magazine interviewed about the NEID instrument back in 2020 – has publicly addressed Loeb's comments in his own blog, calling them "objectively wrong".
You can read Wright's response to Loeb's analysis of the 3I/ATLAS data here.
What are your thoughts on 3I/ATLAS? Let us know by emailing contactus@skyatnightmagazine.com
