[Regnum] The South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, using the MeerKAT radio telescope, received the first signal from the 3I/ATLAS space object moving toward Earth. This was reported by The Astronomer's Telegram.
"We observed 3I/ATLAS with MeerKAT on October 24, using L-band receivers and the NE54M correlator mode... OH absorption was detected in the 1665 MHz and 1667 MHz lines," the scientists clarified.
However, on September 28, specialists were unable to detect 3I/ATLAS in the same absorption lines.
On July 1, the Atlas telescope system discovered an interstellar object, dubbed 3I/ATLAS. "3I" signifies that it is the third such celestial body ever observed. Interstellar objects form outside the Solar System and are the remnants of destroyed planetary systems. Two weeks later, the Gemini North telescope obtained images of the comet, which revealed that 3I/ATLAS formed in the thick disk of the Milky Way. Its age is estimated at 7 billion years, making it older than the Solar System. 3I/ATLAS has a diameter of approximately 20 km.
On July 26, scientists from Cornell University in the United States reported the presence of anomalous characteristics in an intergalactic object approaching Earth, 3I/ATLAS. They hypothesize that it is a technological device controlled by extraterrestrial intelligence and launched with hostile intent.
"We present additional analysis of the astrodynamics of 3I/ATLAS and hypothesize that this object may be technologically advanced and possibly hostile," the publication said.
On the night of November 2, NASA astrophysicists reported an unusual maneuver by 3I/ATLAS as it approached the center of the Solar System: the comet demonstrated non-gravitational acceleration at 203 million km from the Sun.