…we’ve never seen an interstellar object like this before, it is huge and appears to be generating its own power and light

3I/ATLAS


NASA missions are working together to track and study this rare, interstellar [comet] as it passes through our solar system.

https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/comets/3i-atlas/comet-3i-atlas-multimedia/ https://truthsocial.com/@greggphillips/115242131145507718
3I/ATLAS does have characteristics never seen before in comets, making it a major subject of scientific intrigue.

Chemical Signature

Its coma is dominated by carbon dioxide (CO₂) rather than water ice, resulting in an exceptionally high CO₂/H₂O ratio the highest ever recorded for a comet.

3I/ATLAS began releasing water and volatile compounds at a distance where such activity is usually minimal, highlighting behavior outside the norm for comets.

Advanced telescopes detected traces of carbon monoxide, carbonyl sulfide, cyanide, atomic nickel vapor, and unique organics.

Physical and Orbital Features

Size estimates range dramatically, with some observations suggesting it might be the largest interstellar object ever seen (up to 12 miles in diameter), though uncertainty remains.

The nucleus brightness and size don’t fit usual comet models, with initial data suggesting a much brighter and larger body than expected.

Its orbit is nearly aligned with the solar system’s flat plane (ecliptic) but is retrograde, moving opposite the direction of planetary orbits, an oddity for interstellar objects.

Controversies and Speculation

Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb and others speculated about possible artificial origins due to anomalies in size, composition, and motion, though most mainstream astronomers dismiss these as premature.

Novel features like the direction and growth of its tail, coma polarization, and the early onset of activity challenge models of how comets, interstellar or local, should behave.

3I/ATLAS remains a scientific outlier, with its peculiar chemistry, size, and trajectory pushing researchers to reconsider long-held assumptions about interstellar comets.

@greggphillips https://truthsocial.com/@greggphillips/115242446462112285