Strange signal detected from mysterious interstellar visitor 3I/ATLAS as it moves closer to Earth

Daily Mail ^ | 10 Nov 2025 | STACY LIBERATORE, US SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR

[blueplum]

For the first time, astronomers have picked up a radio signal from the mysterious interstellar visitor as it speeds through our Solar System.

South Africa's MeerKAT radio telescope detected absorption lines from OH molecules...Harvard professor Avi Loeb, who has been studying 3I/ATLAS since the summer, said: 'These molecules leave a distinct radio signature that telescopes like MeerKAT can pick up.'...

Optical images captured on November 9 reveal that 3I/ATLAS is ejecting enormous jets of material both toward and away from the sun. The jets stretch nearly 600,000 miles sunward and almost 1.8 million miles in the opposite direction, roughly the diameter of the sun or the moon in the sky.

At its current distance of 203 million miles from Earth, these distances represent the first clear measurements of the vast size of 3I/ATLAS's activity....

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TOPICS: Astronomy; Chit/Chat; Science
KEYWORDS: 3eyedatlas; 3iatlas; aliens; aviloeb; conman; galileogrifter; galileoproject; harvardnutjob; meerkat; nuttyprofessor; publicityhound; space

[blueplum]

optical image photo of front and rear eject at link

[Texas Eagle]

Marvin The Martian?

[Craftmore]

I for one welcome our galactic overlords ,,,,,

[blackdog]

Due to the government shutdown, we are receiving no intergalactic visitors at this time. We are sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused Klatu, Gorn, Romulan, Epsilon 7, or any other aliens that have made such a trip.

[alexander_busek]

Optical images captured on November 9 reveal that 3I/ATLAS is ejecting enormous jets of material both toward and away from the sun.

Manoeuvering thrusters.

Regards,

[Governor Dinwiddie]

Klaatu barada nikto.

[Jonty30]

I wonder if I lay out some cat food, if we can attract SMOD.

[Retgearjammer]

The signal is neither STRANGE or MYSTERIOUS. It is explainable and predictable.

[Worldtraveler once upon a time]

“Harvard professor Avi Loeb” seems to be driving the whole media event. Being cited a lot must be a thrill. Maybe even a tingle up his leg?

[Blue Highway]

Chrissie Matthews still has that tingle.

[Libloather]

It’s the teleporter. Let them in!

[equaviator]

Cue the next “Heaven’s Gate” Die-In.

[Ken H]

“The signal is neither STRANGE or MYSTERIOUS. It is explainable and predictable.”

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OK. Explain what it is and what it’s going to do.

[faithhopecharity]

“We are the Borg. You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile.”

[Jonty30]

Basically, **3I/ATLAS** is the third confirmed interstellar object to pass through our Solar System (following 1I/’Oumuamua in 2017 and 2I/Borisov in 2019), discovered in late 2025 by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS). It’s a comet-like body originating from outside our solar system, currently speeding through the outer Solar System beyond Neptune’s orbit.

The radio signal detected from it—specifically, absorption lines at 1.665 GHz and 1.667 GHz—is the first such observation from an interstellar object. This signal arises naturally from **hydroxyl (OH) radicals** in the object’s coma (the gaseous envelope around its nucleus). As the comet approaches the Sun, it outgasses water vapor and other volatiles, breaking down H₂O molecules into OH radicals via photolysis (UV radiation from the Sun). These OH molecules then interact with background cosmic microwave radiation or synchrotron emission, producing narrow absorption features at those exact radio frequencies due to their hyperfine transition lines.

This is a common phenomenon in solar system comets, confirming 3I/ATLAS’s natural, icy composition rather than any artificial origin—despite some speculation from astronomers like Avi Loeb about unusual traits like its jet structure or trajectory similarities to the 1977 “Wow!” signal. Observations from telescopes like MeerKAT in South Africa captured this in early November 2025, ruling out exotic explanations.

[Jonty30]

Grok’s explanation seems to be that the radio frequency in question is the one not being absorbed, but reflected. Every atomic element or molecules has a radio frequency that it will not absorb but reflect and this one of the ways we use to identify matter in space.

[griffin]

Nancy Pelosi’s reflected pace maker signal?

Decaying beoch needs a strong input.

[Ezekiel]

'Assuming a solid density of 0.5 grams per cubic centimeter, the object must be at least three miles across, and if most of its nucleus survived perihelion, it could be six miles or larger,'

[Track9]

He’s from Harvard so he’s used to fooling people.

[SaveFerris]

Send More Chuck Berry