The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) recently issued a response saying it could “neither confirm nor deny the existence or nonexistence of records” related to the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS, which has reignited global debate about whether the object is simply a comet or something more mysterious
3I/ATLAS is the third confirmed interstellar comet to pass through our solar system, discovered by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) telescope in July 2025.
CIA didn’t answer questions on 3I/ATLAS
This unusual CIA reply came in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by researcher John Greenewald Jr, who expected a clear yes/no about if intelligence agencies had files on the object. In contrast to a standard “no records found”, the CIA’s evasive answer suggested that some sensitive material may exist, they gave a type of reply which is typically reserved for matters involving national security or classified capabilities. The CIA said that “the fact of the existence or nonexistence of such records is itself currently and properly classified and is intelligence sources and methods information protected from disclosure.”
Critics, including Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb, have questioned why the CIA would treat data on what NASA has repeatedly called a natural comet as sensitive. Loeb wrote that if “this information is treated as sensitive enough to be classified by the CIA is surprising, given that NASA officials stated decisively at a press conference on November 19, 2025, that 3I/ATLAS is definitely a comet of natural origin.”
Could 3I/ATLAS be a black swan event?
The debate around 3I/ATLAS centres on whether its unusual characteristics suggest something more than a simple comet from interstellar space. Loeb further said that “the serious consideration of a black swan event by the CIA was hidden from public view in order to prevent panic from taking hold for no good reason.” Black swan event is an extremely rare event that has widespread effects, thus, Loeb said that if the CIA went public with the records of 3I/ATLAS, it could possibly create unrest in society and have adverse effects on the stock market.
Despite the consensus, some scientists have speculated about non-natural explanations. Loeb has previously argued in other contexts that certain orbital alignments or unusual physical traits of interstellar objects could be consistent with technology, though mainstream researchers disagree. Independent astronomers have pointed out that extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence and that the available observations are consistent with cometary physics.
A broader scientific context shows that observational data from telescopes like the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) reveal a coma composition dominated by carbon dioxide with water and dust features seen in cometary bodies and no confirmed technosignatures so far.
