The object 3I/ATLAS made it past the Sun in one piece, which led Harvard astronomer to double down on his earlier argument about the object's nature.

Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb has intensified his call for NASA to release high-resolution images of the enigmatic interstellar object, 3I/ATLAS, captured 40 days ago by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

indisputable scientific evidence for a technological artifact from an extraterrestrial civilization within 5 years—Loeb bets

Scientists say 3I/Atlas came closest to Mars in October. Its path this month put it in the path of the warm rays of our sun, where a tail became more visible. The 3.5-mile solar object is traveling at 137,000 miles per hour, NASA said.

Harvard physicist Avi Loeb calculates that the probability of the giant interstellar object 3I/ATLAS being a natural comet is approximately 1 in 100 million.

Harvard physicist Avi Loeb has drawn attention for his take on the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS, which was officially observed on July 1, 2025. According to NASA, “comet” 3I/ATLAS is the “third known object from outside our solar system to be discovered passing through our celestial neighborhood.”