Media2025

Avi Loeb and colleagues propose the 'Loeb Scale' for interstellar objects

When: 6 Aug 2025
Sources: 3 public sources

Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb, a co-author of the Loeb Scale Christopher Michel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Omer Eldadi, Gershon Tenenbaum and Avi Loeb posted a 0-10 scale for rating how anomalous an interstellar object is, from natural (0) to confirmed artificial (8-10). They rated 'Oumuamua and 3I/ATLAS a 4; Loeb has said 3I/ATLAS is most likely a natural comet.

Sources

FirsthandThe Loeb Scale: Astronomical Classification of Interstellar Objects (arXiv:2508.09167) (opens in a new tab)arXiv / 2025-08-06
FirsthandQuantitative Mapping of the Loeb Scale (arXiv:2509.06253) (opens in a new tab)arXiv / 2025-09-08
FirsthandUpdating the Loeb Classification Scale of 3I/ATLAS (Avi Loeb) (opens in a new tab)Avi Loeb (Medium) / 2025-12-21

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