SCIENTISTS are scratching their heads as 3I/ATLAS reaches its closest point to Earth, but it’s not behaving like a typical comet.
On December 19, 3I/ATLAS is expected to come within 170 million miles of our planet, travelling at 130,000 miles per hour.
This is close enough for people to see with small telescopes, but still far enough away to pose no threat of collision.
Nasa has declared that there is no evidence to suggest the object is artificially constructed or contains any form of extraterrestrial life.
However, researchers are not in total agreement.
Several strange details about the comet remain unexplained by science.
A-BLAZE-ING!
Once-in-a-lifetime ‘alien’ comet 3I/ATLAS to sweep past Earth in DAYS
NIGHTS TO REMEMBER
Two comets in sky this week that won’t return for 1,300 and 20,000 YEARS
One study has linked the interstellar visitor to cosmic calendars used by ancient civilisations.
Independent researcher and author Andrew Collins has provided evidence of a mysterious “heartbeat” coming from the object.
This heartbeat follows a 15.48-hour cycle that, oddly, aligns with Earth‘s 24-hour day.
Earlier scans revealed that the comet had been releasing these rhythmic bursts every 16.16 hours.
New data from Spain‘s Two-Meter Twin Telescope suggests that this cycle has changed as the comet approaches Earth.
It is still unclear whether something within 3I/ATLAS has physically changed or if scientists have simply gathered more accurate measurements.
Regardless, Collins pointed out that these unknown vibrations align perfectly with timing systems used by ancient Chinese and Indian civilisations.
On November 19, Nasa held a press conference, declaring 3I/ATLAS a comet.
They also reported that the space agency had not detected any technosignatures – technological traces of intelligent life.
Collins’ findings were based on Earth-based and space telescope data tracking 3I/ATLAS since it was first discovered near our solar system in July.
According to Collins, the object’s heartbeat appears to follow an ancient 144-second timing system used by old Chinese clocks and Indian meditation practices.
He also found that the comet’s 15.48-hour cycle fits exactly into 387 of these units, while Earth’s full 24-hour day fits precisely into 600.
For Collins, this level of precision seems too perfect to be a coincidence.
He suggested that the comet may be “broadcasting” a universal mathematical pattern, hinting at intelligent design rather than random chance.
Other anomalies include the comet speeding up without gravity’s assistance, its near-impossible trajectory that takes it close to multiple planets, and its apparent origin from the same direction as the famous 1977 “alien” radio signal.
“The many anomalies associated with 3I/ATLAS strongly hint that it is not a mundane comet but something that could be described as a directed comet,” Collins said.
Despite these claims, both Nasa and the European Space Agency (ESA) have dismissed the idea that 3I/ATLAS is anything more than a lifeless comet with a unique chemical composition.
Avi Loeb, head of the Galileo Project – an initiative looking for extraterrestrial life – recently criticised Nasa for not considering all possibilities surrounding 3I/ATLAS.
“Alien technology is a potential threat because when you go on a blind date of interstellar proportions, you never know whether you have a friendly visitor as your dating partner or a serial killer,” he said.
“When there are implications to society, we must consider even an unlikely event and collect as much data as possible to convince us otherwise.”
However, Professor Chris Lintott, an astronomer from the University of Oxford, does not agree.
“It is just nonsense,” he said.
“It’s like saying we should consider the possibility that the moon is made of cheese.”
He said the comet’s changing colour and brightness can be explained by the Sun heating pockets of ice and various materials it collected during its journey to our solar system.
“There is nothing this thing has done that we haven’t seen elsewhere,” Lintott added.
