Is this the new Area 51?<\/p>\n
3I\/ATLAS may have left Earth\u2019s neighborhood, but it\u2019s still very much on our radar. In a new Medium post<\/a>, Harvard Scientist Avi Loeb pointed out that the CIA hinted at the existence of classified documents related to the interstellar comet, suggesting that it could potentially be a threat to humanity.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s very interesting that they did not dismiss the existence of documents within the CIA on this matter,\u201d the astrophysicist told the Post. <\/p>\n Loeb was referencing the CIA\u2019s response to a query by UFO researcher\/conspiracy theorist\u00a0John Greenewald Jr.<\/p>\n The CIA seal. \u201cIf you have a low probability event and you multiply by a large impact on society, it must be taken seriously because you have to make sure that your interpretation is correct when the implications are large,\u201d Loeb told the Post while speculating about the CIA\u2019s for their ambiguous response. AP<\/p>\n In the letter, which Greenewald Jr. shared to X<\/a>, the agency wrote that it can neither \u201cconfirm nor deny the existence or nonexistence of records\u201d related to 3I\/ATLAS.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Post reached out to the CIA for comment.<\/p>\n Loeb wrote that the CIA\u2019s seemingly hush-hush treatment of the phenomenon contrasted with the party line espoused by NASA officials, who declared at a November press conference that ATLAS was a comet.<\/p>\n \u201cIf this conclusion was clear all along to everyone within government and academia \u2014 as NASA officials presented the case, then why would the CIA treat the possible existence of records dealing with a natural comet as sensitive enough to be classified?\u201d he inquired.<\/p>\n An image of 3I\/ATLAS, taken on November 26, 2025 by the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph (GMOS) on Gemini North on Maunakea in Hawaii. : International Gemini Observatory\/NOIRLab\/NSF\/AURA\/B. Bolin<\/p>\n Loeb believed that they might want to remain ambiguous on the matter in the event that ATLAS was a Black Swan Event, defined as a high-impact event<\/a>\u00a0that is difficult to forecast under normal circumstances but appears to be inevitable in hindsight.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you have a low probability event and you multiply by a large impact on society, it must be taken seriously because you have to make sure that your interpretation is correct when the implications are large,\u201d Loeb told the Post. <\/p>\n He analogized the situation to September 11 or the Trojan Horse \u2014 improbable-seeming phenomena with catastrophic consequences in retrospect.<\/p>\n However, they decided to keep their serious consideration of said Black Swan event hidden to avoid inciting panic. Loeb said they they\u2019d prefer not to \u201ccry wolf,\u201d so that if\/when a so-called real intergalactic wolf in sheep\u2019s clothing arrived, they would still be credible. <\/p>\n Image of 3I\/ATLAS taken by the Deep Random Survey telescope. K Ly\/Deep Random Survey \/ SWNS<\/p>\n Loeb told the Post that if \u201cthis interpretation is correct, it\u2019s the first astronomical object that received such attention from the intelligence agencies, including the CIA.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cAnd that makes it interesting because it could be a template for future interstellar objects,\u201d he declared.<\/p>\n Loeb has firmly maintained that ATLAS could be artificial since its discovery in July. <\/p>\n