Furthermore, Loeb is critical of mainstream comet experts who rush to label 3I/ATLAS “just a comet” — he contends many haven’t done the intensive, anomaly-focused research that he and his collaborators have undertaken (especially in looking for things not typical of comets).
What to Watch & Why It Matters
Observational windows to monitor:
- Pre- and post-sun-pass behavior.The sunward pass around late October is key. Will the jet change direction or intensity? Will we see new compositional outgassing or shifts in trajectory?
- Emergent visibility in late November/December. After it moves out from behind the Sun, telescopes should capture how the comet (or object) behaves — dust tail, coma changes, polarization, spectral lines.
- Compositional tracing. Further high-resolution spectroscopy (nickel, iron, cyanide, water, CO₂) may test whether the anomalous ratios hold up across multiple observations.
- Trajectory refinement. Slight perturbations may reveal non-standard forces (e.g., active jets, outgassing asymmetries) that could tip interpretation toward natural vs artificially guided.
- Cross-checking for other hypotheses. If 3I/ATLAS were technological (or partially engineered), one might expect signs like persistently non-thermal outgassing, directed thrust, or exotic materials — things scientists are now looking for.
Implications:
