NEW: The interstellar object named 3I/ATLAS is many things: a time capsule from an ancient star, an effervescent icy voyager, a clue to the earlier days of the Milky Way. You know what it definitely isn’t? An alien spacecraft. 😜 Me @newscientist newscientist.com/article/250…

🚨 Alright, Let’s Talk 3I ATLAS ☄️ There’s been a wave of speculation around Comet 3I/ATLAS, and for good reason — it’s not behaving like a normal comet. That’s a fact With so much noise online, we wanted to go straight to the data and share what’s actually confirmed as of October 29, 2025 — no clickbait, no guesswork. #Astronomers studying ATLAS have detected seven verified anomalies, each raising new questions about what this interstellar traveler really is: 1️⃣ Trajectory: Nearly aligned with the plane of our Solar System — a rare precision seen in only 0.2% of simulated cases. 2️⃣ Timing: Its closest pass to the Sun happened exactly when the Sun blocked our view, delaying discovery. 3️⃣ Mass & Speed: Roughly a million times more massive than ‘Oumuamua and traveling twice as fast. 4️⃣ Composition: Only 4% water vapor but unusually high CO₂ — a ratio almost never seen before. 5️⃣ Metals: The gas it releases is rich in nickel, not iron — a surprising chemical signature. 6️⃣ Light Polarization: Displays a negative polarization curve, unseen in any comet to date. 7️⃣ Tail Behavior: For weeks, its tail pointed toward the Sun — the opposite of normal — before flipping direction. None of these details are speculation. They’re measured, peer-reviewed data. The mystery is why. Some researchers say the anomalies demand open-minded inquiry, even if that means entertaining unconventional possibilities. Others suggest nature itself still has surprises left to teach us. And that’s what makes this moment so fascinating: we’re watching the scientific method unfold in real time — observing, testing, debating, and refining what we know about the universe. Curiosity is how science moves forward. Stay curious, stay critical, and keep looking up. 🌌 📊 Sources: NASA / ESA / JPL / IAU / Harvard–Smithsonian CfA