Only three objects from outside our solar system have ever been spotted passing through, and the latest one has scientists talking a lot. This new arrival, known as 3I/ATLAS, is speeding through space on a path that will carry it past our solar system.
Most experts believe 3I/ATLAS is a comet, a chunk of ice and rock that has been traveling through the universe for millions, maybe billions, of years. But not everyone is convinced. Some scientists say there are strange things about it that don’t quite add up.
Harvard professor Avi Loeb, who has been studying mysterious space objects for years, has suggested that 3I/ATLAS could be more than just a comet. Looking at images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, he noticed that the object shines unusually bright. If it’s only reflecting sunlight, it shouldn’t glow in the way it does. This made him consider other possibilities.
Professor Loeb speculates that 3I/ATLAS could be a “reflective surface” about 20 kilometers wide, maybe even powered by some kind of energy source. He even raised the idea that it might not be a natural object at all, but some kind of alien spacecraft traveling through our solar system. He said it’s possible that if it really is an alien ship, its path might have been chosen deliberately so it avoids getting too close to Earth’s telescopes.
He admits, though, that the most likely explanation is still that it’s a natural interstellar object, just like the two before it. Still, he leaves the door open for more unusual ideas, saying that if it is alien in origin, it could also be “potentially hostile.”
For now, NASA and most scientists remain confident that 3I/ATLAS is just a comet. They’ve tracked its path and calculated that it will not come anywhere near Earth. Its closest approach to our planet will still be about 170 million miles away, which is almost twice the distance from Earth to the sun. On October 30, it will swing past the sun at a distance of about 130 million miles before continuing its journey deeper into space.
Over the next few months, astronomers will get a better look at it as it draws closer. But eventually, the object will disappear from view when the sun blocks it out, only to reappear again in December.
If it is just a comet, then it’s another reminder of the vast and fascinating things drifting through the galaxy. But if Professor Loeb is right, and it’s something built by aliens, then this could be one of the most important discoveries in human history. For now, the world waits and watches as 3I/ATLAS speeds by—either as a natural wonder of space or as a silent visitor from another civilization.
https://rabapost.com/scientists-discover-more-details-about-potentially-hostile-alien-threat-hurtling-through-solar-system/
