Multiple Objects Detected Around 3I/ATLAS

New observations from Gemini Observatory North are raising serious questions about the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS racing through our solar system. According to the latest analysis, multiple objects may be traveling with the comet, including C/2025 A6 Lemmon, C/2025 R2 SWAN, and C/2025 K1 Atlas, alongside the primary 3I/ATLAS. Independent amateur astronomers are backing up these findings with their own detailed analysis, creating a growing body of evidence that challenges our understanding of this visitor from beyond our solar system.

According to sky researcher Turboziel on X, who analyzed the latest Gemini Observatory images, distinct points of light are clearly visible in proximity to the main body of 3I/ATLAS. When amateur astronomer Stefan Burns posted his time-lapse animation earlier this month, other observers immediately began their own investigations. A German user called Night Monkey identified multiple fast-moving points of light in the footage, while analyst Alexander Pflum pointed out a brief green flash at the three-second mark of Burns’ animation. This is not a camera artifact but a diffuse, localized glow that should not exist based on what we know about the comet’s composition.

Spectroscopic analysis from the Very Large Telescope in Chile revealed that 3I/ATLAS is carbon-chain depleted, containing virtually no dicarbon. This is significant because dicarbon is the molecule that typically causes comets to glow green when energized by solar ultraviolet radiation. Yet ground-based photographs from early September clearly show a green hue developing around the object, presenting a scientific anomaly that demands explanation.

Turboziel on X

Harvard astrophysicist Dr. Avi Loeb has suggested that 3I/ATLAS might be hollow or composed of very light material unknown on Earth. This theory raises critical questions about the object’s structural integrity. According to Loeb, traveling at over 100,000 miles per hour through space should have torn apart a hollow or extremely light object by now, especially given that it survived a direct hit from a coronal mass ejection in early October and has been experiencing significant outgassing as it approaches the sun. Yet the object remains intact while multiple smaller objects appear around it. This raises the question: are these broken fragments, or are they probes or companion objects traveling together from another star system?

A study published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters reveals that 3I/ATLAS is releasing water vapor at an extraordinary rate of roughly 88 pounds per second. According to observations from NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Space Telescope, this water release is occurring at approximately three astronomical units from the sun, three times the distance between Earth and the sun. Most comets do not begin releasing significant water until much closer to the sun, making this behavior highly unusual.

The most troubling aspect of this story is what remains hidden. The high-resolution data that could answer fundamental questions about 3I/ATLAS has not been made public. NASA, ESA, and other major space agencies have been notably quiet about the multiple object observations. This pattern echoes previous interstellar visitors like Oumuamua and Borisov, where data existed but the full picture was never shared with the public. The same institutional reluctance appears in UAP cases, where military encounters, radar data, and video footage are collected but very little information reaches the public.

Turboziel on X

In a recent interview, Avi Loeb addressed the statistical improbability of these objects, stating that there is a limited reservoir of rocky material per unit volume in interstellar space. According to Loeb, even if all available material were packaged into objects of this size or larger, there would not be enough objects to deliver them at random once per decade to the inner solar system. This statistical challenge adds weight to questions about whether 3I/ATLAS represents natural phenomena or something else entirely.

If multiple objects are confirmed around 3I/ATLAS, it would fundamentally change the conversation about non-human technology and interstellar travel. Amateur astronomers may be forcing the issue, potentially leaving major institutions no choice but to release the data they are currently withholding. Whether the full picture emerges from official channels or independent researchers, the implications extend far beyond astronomy into questions about what governments have known for decades.

Sources

Auburn University. (2025, October 7). Physicists detect water’ss ultraviolet fingerprint in interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS. phys.org. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-physicists-ultraviolet-fingerprint-interstellar-comet.html

Landymore, F. (2025, October 11). Interstellar object is spraying something weird, scientists find. Futurism. https://futurism.com/space/interstellar-object-spraying-water

Loeb, A. (2025, October 11). The Gravity of 3I/ATLAS. Medium. https://avi-loeb.medium.com/the-gravity-of-3i-atlas-a0f4faa1d858

NewsNation. (2025, October 1). 3I/ATLAS comet estimated size growing, new data shows | Elizabeth Vargas Reports [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLmaWOJPaUw

Stefan Burns Geo [@StefanBurnsGeo]. (2025, October 7). [Image]. X. https://x.com/StefanBurnsGeo/status/1974183413444915273

Tangermann, V. (2025, September 26). Sun fires energy blast straight at mysterious interstellar object cruising through solar system. Futurism. https://futurism.com/space/interstellar-object-sun-coronal-mass-ejection

Turboziel [@frankdedeken]. (2025, October 14). Enhancing/Upgrading 3I/ATLAS from orr.pic. GeminiObservatory North July. 3 Views_Analysis & 1 Closer look [Images]. X. https://x.com/frankdedeken/status/1978056302698877127

Xing, Z., Oset, S., Noonan, J., & Bodewits, D. (2025). Water production rates of the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS. The Astrophysical Journal Letters, 991(2), L50. https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/ae08ab