Chilling update on mysterious object aiming at Earth that Harvard scientist claims is 'not natural'

A scientist has made a shocking claim about a mysterious object which is hurtling towards the Earth.

The object, named 3I/ATLAS, is around the size of Manhattan and has a number of strange characteristics which have led to speculation that it is some sort of alien spacecraft.

So far, there have been several peculiar observations about the object which make some think that it might be an artificial object.

These include a strange 'anti-tail', as well as jets which have been spotted emanating from it and radio waves detected on the object.

Now, in case that wasn't enough to fuel speculation about the precise nature of the object, yet another weird phenomenon has been observed on the object as it makes its way through the solar system.

So what is the new factor? Well, it's related to those jets we just mentioned.

3I/ATLAS has made a very startling change by growing a tail (Jewitt and Luu 2025)

Specifically, 3I/ATLAS has been observed passing very close to the Sun but has not broken up as might normally be expected for a comet.

Harvard physicist Avi Loeb has been watching 3I/ATLAS for some time and has analysed its qualities to determine what it could be.

Writing on his blog, Loeb said: "Images taken of 3I/ATLAS on November 11, 2025 show a single body, with no evidence for breakup following the perihelion passage two weeks earlier."

'Perihelion' is a technical term for an object's path around the Sun.

He added: "Given the large-scale jets reported recently, the fact that 3I/ATLAS remains a single body is surprising for a natural comet."

Loeb went on to suggest that the continued presence of the jets coming out of the object might point to it being a spacecraft of some sort.

He wrote: "Technological thrusters which point their exhaust towards the Sun would accelerate away from the Sun. This post-perihelion maneuver might be employed by a spacecraft that aims to gain speed rather than slow down through the gravitational assist from the Sun."

Loeb has a 'scale' on which he rates the possibility that something is a naturally occurring object, with 0 meaning that something is definitely natural.

This goes all the way up to 10, which means that something is definitely a technological object.

The object was first spotted in July (ATLAS/University of Hawaii/NASA)

He explained: “I suggested a `Loeb Scale’ for interstellar objects where `0’ is definitely a natural object (comet or asteroid) and `10’ is definitely a technological object (identified by manoeuvres or emission of artificial light or signals)."

But where does 3I/ATLAS sit on this scale?

"Currently, I give 3I/ATLAS a 6 on that scale, but my assessment will change as we get better data on it when it comes closer to the Sun," said Loeb

However, others have taken a different explanation for the radio waves which have been emitted by the object.

Livescience has said that the radio waves emitted from the object are actually proof that 3I/ATLAS is a natural object.

This is the presence of hydroxyl radicals in the coma, which is a part of a comet.

Livescience said: "These radicals are formed by the breakdown of water molecules as they are ejected from the comet via a natural process known as outgassing, which is a clear sign of cometary activity, according to a 2016 study."