3I/ATLAS Trajectory: Harvard Scientist Claims Object Is Sending Spy 'Satellites'

An interstellar object, 3I/ATLAS, has become the subject of a controversial hypothesis from Harvard Professor of Science Avi Loeb, who suggests it may not be a natural comet but rather an extraterrestrial 'mothership' deploying surveillance 'satellites'. Since its appearance in July 2025, 3I/ATLAS has exhibited a dozen extraordinary anomalies that challenge conventional astronomical explanations. While NASA and other institutions classify it as a natural comet due to its coma, tail, and water vapor outgassing, Professor Loeb argues these features could disguise an artificial craft, with an icy layer sublimating near the Sun.

Professor Loeb's most compelling evidence centers on 3I/ATLAS's peculiar emissions and tightly controlled movement. Observations after its closest approach to the Sun on October 29, 2025, revealed tightly collimated jets extending millions of kilometers, including a startling plume structure pointing ahead of the object and perpendicular to the Sun. This defies standard comet physics, where jets typically form towards or away from the Sun. Furthermore, spectral analysis detected nickel emissions without the expected corresponding iron, adding to the mystery of its unusual composition and suggesting a technological signature.

The theory of active 'spy satellites' is bolstered by the object's improbable, custom-tuned trajectory. Professor Loeb calculates the alignment of its path with the plane of the planets to be statistically baffling, with a chance of being a random natural object at approximately one in a hundred million. The object had a close encounter with Mars in early October 2025 and is predicted to rendezvous with Jupiter in March 2026. Crucially, its forecasted perijove distance of 53.445 million kilometers is virtually identical to Jupiter's Hill's radius, suggesting an intentional maneuver to release technological devices as artificial satellites of Jupiter, potentially targeting its moons or gravitationally stable Lagrange points.

Despite NASA's insistence on a natural origin, the scientific community remains polarized. Professor Loeb, founder of the Galileo Project, maintains that dismissing such anomalies without thorough investigation risks missing humanity's most significant scientific discovery. The implications of an artificial interstellar object actively deploying probes within our solar system are profound, potentially redefining not only astronomy but also civilization itself, and warranting increased scrutiny of interstellar visitors for their potential impact on future airspace and space domain awareness.