Overview
- Harvard astronomer Avi Loeb now characterizes 3I/ATLAS as most likely natural, revising his earlier suggestion that it could be an alien spacecraft.
- The object made its closest approach to Earth on December 19 at roughly 167 million miles and, as Loeb noted in a blog post, it simply passed by without any telltale technological behavior.
- Recent coverage cites a broad expert consensus that the visitor is not evidence of extraterrestrial technology, despite its previously noted odd features.
- In a follow-up essay, Loeb proposes leveraging fast interstellar objects as couriers for engraved messages or attached payloads to reach interstellar space more quickly.
- 3I/ATLAS is expected to pass within about 33.3 million miles of Jupiter on March 16, 2026, which could provide another opportunity for detailed observations.