The 3I/ATLAS interstellar object flying through the Solar System may carry out a gravitational Obert maneuver as early as next week, astrophysicist Avi Loeb said in his blog.
"When will 3I/ATLAS reach the optimal time for Obert maneuvers? Just eight days after joining the Sun. On October twenty—ninth, 2025, 3I/ATLAS will reach perihelion at 203 million kilometers," he wrote.
According to the scientist, if we assume that the 3I/ATLAS interstellar object is a massive carrier ship, then it will probably continue to move along its original gravitational trajectory and eventually leave the Solar System.
"In this case, the Oberth maneuver can be applied to mini-probes that it launches at perihelion to the planets of the Solar system," Loeb explained.
At the same time, the scientist emphasizes that at the moment the 3I/ATLAS interstellar object is most likely a natural comet, so the Oberth maneuver itself should be seriously considered as an event related to the concept of a "black swan", even if its probability is low.