“Alien” comet? Everything we know about 3i/Atlas, the web phenomenon

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The 3i/Atlas has become the newest phenomenon and continues to generate a huge amount of curious comments among internet users. The interstellar comet, called by some experts an “outsider,” wandered through the Milky Way and is now passing through our solar system.

Its name came about because it was discovered by the ATLAS system (Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System) and because it was the . With its solid core turning into gas as it approaches the Sun, the comet is considered active.

In this process, 3i/Atlas ends up forming a diffuse cloud of dust and gas called a coma. Astronomers confirm that its hyperbolic trajectory is one of its most intriguing features. Currently, the comet is on its way out of the solar system, with very rare chances of returning.

Impressive data was revealed through observations with cutting-edge telescopes, and so people began to create countless curiosities. In fact, the James Webb Space Telescope detected a coma dominated by carbon dioxide (CO₂), as well as water, carbon monoxide (CO) and traces of other elements, an unprecedented composition.

The ratio of CO₂ to water is one of the highest ever seen, suggesting that the comet formed under very different chemical and temperature conditions than comets from Jupiter or the Oort Cloud. Astronomers suggest that 3i/Atlas may have originated in the thick disk of the Milky Way, a region of older stars.

This makes it possibly older than the Solar System itself, with estimates pointing to at least 7 billion years.

3i/Atlas showed incredible speed in its trajectory

With an impressive speed of around 210,000 km/h, the comet is one of the fastest objects ever recorded in space. The comet generated a series of comments in the global media, balancing cutting-edge science and speculation from users of social networks such as TikTok and Instagram.

Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb drew attention when he raised the hypothesis (disputed by the majority of the scientific community) that the comet’s activity and shape could be compatible with alien technology. NASA and the National Observatory have confirmed that there is no cause for concern.

3i/Atlas passed at a safe distance of about 270 million kilometers from Earth (approximately 1.8 astronomical units), far away from any danger of collision.