3I/ATLAS has entered a new, far more controversial phase of scrutiny after January 2026 images revealed a strikingly precise 'triple-jet' structure emerging from its core.
The phenomenon has prompted Harvard astrophysicist Professor Avi Loeb to suggest that the interstellar visitor's behaviour may not be entirely natural.
High-resolution analysis shows three tightly collimated jets separated by exactly 120 degrees, a geometry Loeb describes as difficult to reconcile with random cometary outgassing.
While NASA scientists continue to classify 3I/ATLAS as a natural comet, the new data have intensified debate across the astronomical community, transforming a once-routine observation into one of the most closely watched space mysteries of the decade.
When 3I/ATLAS was first detected on 1 July 2025 by the ATLAS telescope in Chile, it was widely assumed to be a relatively standard, if slightly erratic, interstellar comet. However, as it nears its closest approach to the Sun, its behaviour has become increasingly volatile.
The new pictures, which were made using advanced Larson-Sekanina rotational gradient filters on Hubble Space Telescope data, show three separate plumes of gas and dust flying away from the nucleus in a very symmetrical triangular shape. This is not the normal outgassing that happens in most comets; instead, it is a focused, violent release of material that suggests a much more complicated internal structure—or propulsion system—than anyone had thought possible.
The Scientific Mystery Behind The 3I/ATLAS Triple-Jet Formation
The discovery of this three-jet structure has shocked the astronomical community. Dr Elena Vance, one of the main researchers on the imaging project, said that the moment the data became clear was 'completely transformative.'
The team believes the three jets are coming from specific high-pressure vents on the surface. This could mean that the inside of 3I/ATLAS is full of unstable ices that are sublimating at different rates. But Professor Loeb says that the jets' precise geometry, which puts them exactly 120 degrees apart, is 'puzzling' and hard to explain by random ice pockets.
This 'triple-threat' of activity is providing a rare glimpse into the primordial chemistry of another star system. Unlike 'Oumuamua, which remained stubbornly silent and enigmatic, or 2I/Borisov, which behaved like a traditional comet, 3I/ATLAS is proving to be a hybrid of sorts. The sheer power of these jets is also affecting the object's trajectory. Astronomers have noted 'non-gravitational acceleration' that is significantly higher than initially modelled.
Professor Loeb suggests these jets might be acting as artificial thrusters, pointing out that the object's rotation axis is aligned with the Sun to within a mere 7 degrees—a geometric coincidence he calculates has only a 0.2 per cent chance of occurring naturally. This means the jets are acting like natural thrusters, pushing the object onto a path that makes precise long-term tracking a genuine challenge for orbital mechanics experts.
Why The 3I/ATLAS Discovery Is Redefining Interstellar Physics
The effects on our understanding of the universe are important and go beyond just being a pretty sight. If 3I/ATLAS can stay together even though the heat in our solar system is so high, it means that things in space might be much tougher and more geologically active than we thought.
The conversation now revolves around whether these traits qualify as 'technosignatures' or, as NASA officials concluded in November 2025, if the object is simply a 'natural comet' displaying unique chemistry. There are three active zones, indicating a level of diversity we usually only see on much bigger planets.
As the object moves quickly toward a close encounter with Jupiter's moon Eupheme in March 2026, telescopes all over the world, from the Atacama Desert to orbital observatories, are being redirected to catch every possible frame of this once-in-a-lifetime event. The pictures from January 2026 have made 3I/ATLAS the most studied object in space history. Loeb has even said that if 3I/ATLAS sends 'daughter objects' into orbit around Jupiter while it passes by, that would be proof that it came from a technological source.
Public interest has also grown significantly. Amateur astronomers have shared their own long-exposure photos, which aren't as detailed as the professional data but still show the clear elongation caused by the triple-jet activity. For now, the world is still focused on this quiet traveller, waiting to see what other secrets it might reveal as it speeds back into the dark parts of interstellar space.
