Vladimir Putin positions interstellar object 3I/ATLAS as “Russia’s secret weapon” (Photo: Creative Commons)
Vladimir Putin drew the attention of the scientific community after positioning the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS as a “secret weapon of Russia”.
The 3I/ATLAS is an interstellar object that was identified by the ATLAS telescope of NASA in July 2025. When it was identified, it was traveling at 221,000 km/h.
It is considered an “interstellar object” because it is passing through our Solar System on a trajectory that is not gravitationally bound to the Sun.
This is only the third known interstellar visitor after 1I/‘Oumuamua, identified in 2017, and 2I/Borisov, observed in 2019.
On December 19, 2025, it reached its closest distance to Earth, being spotted 270 million kilometers away from our planet. Therefore, it poses no risk to us, according to scientists.
While some suggested that the object could be a technology or even an alien spacecraft, NASA emphasized that they have “overwhelming evidence” that the 3I/ATLAS is simply a comet.
Given this, Putin’s recent claim that the 3I/ATLAS would be a “secret weapon” of Russia left the scientific community quite confused. The Russian president made this statement during his annual press conference at the World Trade Centre in Moscow.
“I’m going to tell you something, but it must stay between us because this is classified information. This is our secret weapon, but we will only use it as a last resort,” Putin told the journalists, who filled the room with a chuckle.
Fortunately, it seems Putin was joking. After the statement, the Russian president reaffirmed the scientific theory that the object’s path was far too distant to be a concern. “It’s a comet and poses no threat to Earth,” he added.
Photo: Creative Commons. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
