The Non-Gravitational Acceleration of Comet 3I/ATLAS Explained by Cartesian Physics

Comet 3I/ATLAS (C/2025 N1) was shown to have a measurable non-gravitational acceleration at its closest approach to the Sun on October 30, 2025.

• It was measured at 5 × 10⁻⁷ m/s² (or 0.0000005 m/s²)
• This manifests as a tiny radial and transverse push away from the Sun’s expected gravitational pull.

Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb has pointed the cause to the outgassing of carbon monoxide from the comet, as detected in the comet’s coma by the James Webb Space Telescope.

But the comet Oumuamua in 2017 also showed non-gravitational acceleration but without any detectable coma, dust, or gas emissions.

This means that the gas hypothesis is wrong.

Descartes’ Plenum and the Density Gradient Near the Sun

In Descartes’ system, the universe is a continuous plenum filled with virtual space particles that cause:

• gravity
• surface tension
• gauge block wringing
• gravitational lensing
• Dzhanibekov Effect
• galaxy cohesion

The density of the space particles is more near the surface of a star or planet.

• This creates a gradient up to the edge of the solar system or gravitational field of a planet

These particles wrap around the comet, causing surface tension which sublimates the matter on comet’s surface.

This is because sublimation relies on space particles just like vaporization or boiling.

• This leads to gassing which manifests as jets.

Irregularly shaped comets lead to more drag from space particles, causing them to tumble like the Dzhanibekov effect.

This tumbling manifests as the non-gravitational acceleration and was seen by the Rosetta mission on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

• 67P exhibited non-gravitational forces tied to outgassing jets, but also clear tumbling and spin changes influenced by asymmetric activity.
• The spacecraft’s precise tracking showed that these forces arose from localized sublimation on an irregular, rotating body—precisely the kind of aetheric drag and surface interaction Descartes would predict.

Why the Standard Model Falls Short—and Descartes Endures

Modern explanations rely on volatile-driven outgassing, but they struggle with cases like ‘Oumuamua where no gas is seen.

Loeb’s invocation of carbon monoxide as a driver for 3I/ATLAS assumes detectable emissions, yet the acceleration’s subtlety and the comet’s interstellar origin suggest a more universal mechanism.

Cartesian physics resolves this by positing the aether as the fundamental medium: sublimation depends on the density of space particles (aether), just as boiling depends on ambient pressure.

The Sun’s proximity increases aether density, triggering jets and recoil—even subtly—while irregular tumbling modulates the effect like drag in a fluid.

As we continue observing 3I/ATLAS’s outbound path (now monitored through late 2025), any lingering anomalies in trajectory could further test this view. Far from debunking Descartes, the non-gravitational quirks of interstellar comets may vindicate his plenum once more, reminding us that what we call “empty space” is anything but inert.

In the cosmic dance of comets and suns, the invisible aether may yet prove the true choreographer.