Fresh conspiracy theories suggesting 3I/ATLAS is an 'alien spaceship' have surfaced online, despite NASA clearing up what the interstellar object actually is.
Last night (19 November), the space agency released new images of 3I/ATLAS following the end of the US government shutdown and reiterated its belief that 3I/ATLAS is a regular piece of space rock and not the beginning of a hostile alien invasion.
"First observed earlier this year, the 3I/ATLAS comet is only the third object ever identified as entering our solar system from elsewhere in the galaxy," they said after unveiling the new images.
"It poses no threat to Earth and will get no closer than 170 million miles to Earth."
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However, the space agency's latest statement wasn't enough to convince everyone who'd thrown their lot in with the idea that 3I/ATLAS was actually an alien mothership sending out observational technology.
What are the latest claims about 3I/ATLAS?
NASA's press conference coincided with a video from hobby astronomer Ray's Astrophotography who captured images of 3I/ATLAS from his home in Texas, which he claimed showed the comet 'spinning'.
"When you actually take a serious look at it, you will start seeing that it is rotating," he said. "It is rotating to the right."
It is worth noting that a comet rotating isn't something which should be considered out of the ordinary or evidence of aliens - like Earth, comets spin on an axis - and at no point does the content creator suggest it's aliens.
The claims have nevertheless reignited speculation about the origins of 3I/ATLAS, with Harvard astrophysicist and longtime comet commentator Avi Loeb previously claiming there is a 30 to 40 percent chance that 3I/ATLAS isn't a 'naturally formed' object and, if true, could be a 'potentially hostile' alien craft.
He previously hit out at NASA's insistence that 3I/ATLAS is a comet, telling LADbible last month that the space agency is pretending to be the 'adults in the room'.
“There are many anomalies of this object, so you can't say conclusively that it's one thing or another. What we should be is curious, you know, wonder about what it is, and just collect more data," he said.
"I find it really peculiar for NASA, it's sort of the signature of a bureaucratic body where hierarchy decides what is being done, and somehow, someone in the leadership decided to make a very bold and strong statement without attending to the data."
Meanwhile, NASA has stood firm in its assertions that 3I/ATLAS is a naturally formed comet and nothing else.
Topics: Conspiracy Theory, Space
Brenna Cooper