A rapidly evolving dispute over scientific transparency has drawn NASA into a political spotlight, as lawmakers seek access to data involving the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS. The object, which entered the solar system earlier this year, has exhibited behavior that continues to puzzle astronomers and fuel debate over its nature. Questions regarding withheld imagery and incomplete observational records have now prompted formal action on Capitol Hill.
Representative Anna Paulina Luna (R., Fla.) has requested that NASA release specific observational data and images related to 3I/ATLAS. In a letter addressed to Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy, Luna wrote, "I write to request the release of specific observational data related to 3I/ATLAS, recently captured by NASA missions. This information is of great importance to advancing our understanding of interstellar visitors and their interaction with our solar system." She later shared the letter publicly on X.
At the center of the inquiry are images taken by the HiRISE camera aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter between Oct. 2 and Oct. 3, when 3I/ATLAS passed within approximately 30 million kilometers of Mars. Luna also requested supplementary data from the Perseverance rover and "other Mars missions that may have detected unusual activity" during that period. Her office has confirmed that NASA has agreed to provide a formal briefing for the congresswoman and her staff.
The request follows growing concern among researchers over the object's unusual features. As 3I/ATLAS approached perihelion on Oct. 29, it brightened rapidly and displayed signs of non-gravitational acceleration-motion that cannot be explained solely by the Sun's pull. Observations also indicated the object appeared "bluer than the Sun," a characteristic atypical of known comets.
Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb has been among the most vocal scientists studying the object. He has publicly suggested that some of 3I/ATLAS's observed characteristics could, in principle, be consistent with non-natural propulsion, though he has acknowledged that further data is required to determine its origin. Loeb has also said NASA has not released at least one key HiRISE image taken Oct. 2, alleging that the image could help evaluate the direction of the comet's tail-information relevant to determining propulsion mechanisms.
The debate briefly spilled into popular culture when Kim Kardashian posted on X, asking NASA's Sean Duffy to "spill the tea" on the interstellar object. Duffy responded publicly, stating, "Great question! @NASA's observations show that this is the third interstellar comet to pass through our solar system. No aliens. No threat to life here on Earth."
Loeb criticized the exchange in a blog post, writing that Duffy responded to Kim, "a successful businesswoman," instead of addressing scientific inquiries. He later praised Luna's letter, stating, "We all owe a debt of deep gratitude for the visionary support displayed by Representative Luna to frontier science through her letter." Loeb then titled a follow-up Medium post, "Kim Kardashian is Welcome to Join my Research Team on 3I/ATLAS."
NASA has not publicly commented on why the HiRISE images have not been released, with officials citing standard processing and data-verification procedures. The agency has maintained that 3I/ATLAS is a comet, albeit an unusual one, and that no evidence currently supports claims of artificial origin.
