NASA Speaks On 3I/ATLAS: Why The Oldest Interstellar Comet Is Scientifically Key

The silence was deafening, and for those prone to cosmic conspiracy theories, it was practically a confirmation. Was it an alien probe? A messenger from a distant civilisation? The internet was ablaze with speculation. Finally, after a period of intense quiet, NASA has pulled back the curtain, releasing a treasure trove of previously unseen images of comet 3I/ATLAS.

While the agency is keen to stress that this interstellar visitor is a natural object, the delay in data—and the object's exotic origins—has only deepened the intrigue surrounding this celestial celebrity.

The 3I/ATLAS Rumours and the Government Shutdown

Since its discovery on July 1, 2025, by the ATLAS survey telescope in Chile, Comet 3I/ATLAS has achieved a level of fame usually reserved for blockbuster films, largely due to persistent whispers that it could be an extraterrestrial spacecraft.

While the vast majority of astronomers remained confident that the visitor was a natural comet from an unknown star system, NASA went silent on the topic in recent weeks. This wasn't a cover-up, however; it was a consequence of the U.S. government shutdown.

The administrative halt, which ran from Oct. 1 to Nov. 12 and stands as the longest in U.S. history at 43 days, unfortunately coincided with a critical window in the comet's journey. During this time, comet 3I/ATLAS was flying behind the far side of the sun, reaching perihelion—its closest point to the sun—on Oct. 29 and entering its most active and volatile phase.

NASA's inability to release new images during this peak period inadvertently poured fuel on the fire of conspiracy theories, with observers speculating that the agency had something to hide regarding the true nature of 3I/ATLAS.

NASA Addresses the Nature of 3I/ATLAS

When NASA finally hosted a stream on Wednesday (Nov. 19) to present the highly anticipated data, the agency wasted no time in setting the record straight. Immediately after the conference began, NASA Associate Administrator Amit Kshatriya said he wanted to address what he described as 'the rumors'.

'This object is a comet', Kshatriya stated definitively. 'It looks and behaves like a comet... and all evidence points to it being a comet. But this one came from outside the solar system, which makes it fascinating, exciting and scientifically very important'.

While the confirmation of its natural origins might disappoint alien hunters, it shouldn't detract from 3I/ATLAS's story. This object is undeniably special: it is only the third interstellar comet ever recorded (following 'Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov), potentially the oldest comet ever seen and the most massive of its kind. There are plenty of scientific, non-alien reasons for it to captivate humanity.

Capturing New Images of Comet 3I/ATLAS

To document this fleeting flyby, NASA employed a formidable arsenal of technology. The new images were taken using a variety of different instruments, with the closest shots coming from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. This veteran spacecraft has been orbiting Mars since 2006, primarily searching for signs of water on the Red Planet with its onboard High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE).

In a rare shift of focus, the imager snapped comet 3I/ATLAS as it zoomed past Mars in early October at a distance of roughly 19 million miles, providing a unique vantage point. The resulting images reveal a fuzzy, glowing orb encircled by a hazy halo of gas and dust—a sharp contrast to the rigid structure one might expect from an artificial craft.

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) orbiter also captured ultraviolet images of comet 3I/ATLAS that will help researchers better understand the comet's makeup, according to NASA. Preliminary data suggests the presence of water vapour jets, further cementing the theory that this is an icy body reacting to the sun's heat rather than a metallic probe.

Elsewhere, sun-monitoring instruments like NASA's Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) and the asteroid-chasing Psyche and Lucy spacecraft caught additional new glimpses of comet 3I/ATLAS. The space agency noted that these observations will provide details on the comet's tail. However, as the images have only just been processed and are only now being studied, findings from them thus far are limited.

The Ancient Origins of Interstellar 3I/ATLAS

The most mind-bending aspect of this interloper is not just where it is, but where it came from. The comet originated somewhere beyond our solar system. Researchers don't know which star system it came from, but it could be billions of years old — potentially more than 3 billion years older than our sun.

While the comet's age has yet to be confirmed, Tom Statler, lead scientist for solar system small bodies at NASA's Planetary Science Division, noted the object's incredible velocity. He said that because the comet is zooming along three times faster than the average rate at which stars in our cosmic neighbourhood orbit the Milky Way's centre —clocking in at a staggering 153,000 miles per hour— it has likely been in interstellar space for a very long time. Following this solar flyby, the comet will make its closest approach to Earth on Dec. 19 at a safe distance of 167 million miles before exiting our system forever.

'We can't say this for sure, but the likelihood is it came from a solar system older than our own solar system', Statler said during the stream. 'Which gives me goosebumps to think about frankly, because that means that 3I/ATLAS is not just a window into another solar system; it's a window into the deep past, and so deep in the past that it predates even the formation of our Earth and our sun'.

As 3I/ATLAS speeds towards its final departure from our solar system, it leaves behind a legacy not of little green men, but of cosmic wonder. This ancient traveller offers a fleeting glimpse into the galaxy's deep past, reminding us that the reality of the universe is often far more spectacular than science fiction.