3I/ATLAS Nucleus Intact: New Image Defies Heavy Solar Flare Impact

Some experts warned that 3I/ATLAS might break apart after its near-Sun passage on 29 October 2025. Many feared harsh solar flares would damage its core.

Fresh reports now claim an intact 3I/ATLAS nucleus after that perilous stage. New images from 11 November show a stable body near La Palma in Canary Islands. That outcome raises new questions since many expected severe disruption.

READ MORE: 3I/ATLAS Mystery: New Analysis Suggests It's Not a Natural Comet, Why?

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3I/ATLAS Nucleus Still Intact

Astronomers David Jewitt and Jane Luu captured 3I/ATLAS on 11 November with Nordic Optical Telescope in La Palma. That image showed one clear object without signs of fracture.

Jets around 3I/ATLAS stretched for huge distances during that stage. One strong sunward anti-tail appeared again after first detection on 21 July during a Hubble session. That latest shot confirmed a jet angle near a sunward line.

A wide image from 9 November also revealed massive activity around 3I/ATLAS. Material extended nearly one million kilometres sunward with almost three million kilometres in an opposite path. That scale surprised many researchers.

Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb highlighted unusual behaviour around 3I/ATLAS. He stated that images showed one body after perihelion. He also argued that mass loss estimates appeared inconsistent with estimated size figures.

His group calculated an energy demand that required an absorbing sphere nearly 23 kilometres wide. That figure exceeded a maximum size near 5.6 kilometres from Hubble analysis.

He argued that such numbers created an untenable case for a single natural body. Loeb also suggested a directed propulsion idea as a possible explanation for those jets.

Other researchers disagreed with that view. Michigan State University astronomer Darryl Seligman noted that survival matched a one-kilometre scale nucleus. He argued that behaviour remained possible for a natural comet despite unusual features.

Unusual Since Most Comets Break Apart Near the Sun

Standard comets carry rock, dust, and frozen gases. Heat during perihelion drives rapid sublimation within nuclei.

That process builds strong internal stress during many near-Sun passages. Pressure sometimes exceeds structural strength within fragile bodies. Many dynamically new comets fail during those stages.

3I/ATLAS behaved differently. Its intact state surprised researchers due to heavy jets and strong solar activity. Many considered its survival rare given those stresses.

Other ATLAS Comets Break Apart

A separate case came from C/2025 K1 (ATLAS). That object had no link with interstellar 3I/ATLAS despite a shared survey origin. It fractured after an 8 October perihelion.

Astronomer Gianluca Masi recorded multiple fragments on 12 November from Campo Catino Observatory. His view showed sub-nuclei and debris clouds around that comet. A sudden brightening event hinted at rising stress before that split.

Distance played a major role in that breakup, as per Live Science. C/2025 K1 passed perihelion near 50 million kilometres from Sun. That path came almost four times nearer than 3I/ATLAS.

Its intense environment produced a stronger strain and higher heat. 3I/ATLAS passed near 203 million kilometres during its own perihelion stage. That wider orbit reduced stress and improved survival chances.

3I/ATLAS remains under close watch as debate around its nature continues.