An Unidentified Space Object May Be Producing Its Own Light, Suggests Research
An unidentified object from outer space is speeding towards us while releasing its own light, as per recent scientific findings. This speeding object is only the third of its kind ever spotted heading towards the center of our solar system.
Known as 3I/ATLAS, this cosmic body has piqued the interest of a renowned scientist at Harvard University, who is known for his provocative theories about interstellar objects possibly being remnants of extraterrestrial civilizations.
A Comet or a Sign of Intelligent Life?
While most space researchers are leaning towards the idea that this speeding object is a comet, the Harvard scientist continues to entertain the thought that perhaps it's a message from an intelligent life form from beyond our solar system. He remains undeterred in his belief.
The scientist raises these ideas in a recent blog post, citing observations from the Hubble Space Telescope. The telescope captured a glow of light, possibly from a coma, preceding the movement of 3I/ATLAS towards the Sun.
For those who may not know, a coma is the shining, fuzzy cloud that encircles the core of a comet. However, what's intriguing is there's no evidence of a bright cometary tail in the opposite direction, hinting at the possibility that dust may be evaporating from the side of the object that faces the Sun.
Generating Its Own Light?
This absence of a visible tail led the Harvard scientist and his peers to consider a rather intriguing, albeit far-fetched, hypothesis: Could this mysterious space object be producing its own light?
After discussions with another Harvard astrophysicist, the scientist proposed the "simplest interpretation" of 3I/ATLAS' observed "steep brightness profile" is that its core "produces most of the light."
If this is true, it would imply that the actual size of the object is much smaller than currently assumed, roughly comparable with the size of the first two interstellar objects we've observed in the past.
Theories and Possibilities
The Harvard scientist suggested two potential explanations: either 3I/ATLAS is naturally emitting radiation because it's a "rare fragment from the core of a nearby supernova that is rich in radioactive material", or it's a "spacecraft powered by nuclear energy, and the dust emitted from its frontal surface might be from dirt that accumulated on its surface during its interstellar travel."
While the scientist finds the first explanation to be "highly unlikely," he believes the latter requires "better evidence to be viable."
He also argued that the object's unusual trajectory, which includes suspiciously close flybys of both Earth and Jupiter, and its lack of a visible tail both undermine the theory that it's a comet.
A Close Encounter with Mars
The most exciting part is, come this fall, 3I/ATLAS will come close enough to Mars — at least in astronomical terms — offering us a rare opportunity to take a closer look. The Harvard scientist has suggested using Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to point its scientific instruments at the rare visitor.
Encouragingly, scientists at the space agency seem to be on board with this idea. "This morning, I encouraged the team to use their camera during the first week of October 2025 in order to gather new data on 3I/ATLAS," the scientist wrote. "They responded favorably."
