3I/ATLAS will make its closest approach to Jupiter on March 16, 2026, passing at a distance of approximately 53 million km.

The close approach of 3I/ATLAS to Jupiter, the largest planet in the solar system, which has been widely discussed in recent days, is expected to occur on March 16th of next year at approximately 3:00 PM Moscow time. The object will pass just over 53 million kilometers from the gas giant, marking its last close encounter with any planet in the solar system. After passing Jupiter, the interstellar visitor will have a clear path into space ahead, although, technically, it will remain within the solar system for a long time. Specifically, it will only cross the orbit of Neptune, the last planet, in 2028. However, it is certain that this final event will no longer be observable. According to preliminary estimates, the ability to monitor the body's location, even by the largest Earth-based means, will be completely lost by the middle of next year.

The passage of Jupiter, even without conspiracy theories, represents one of the most remarkable features of 3I/ATLAS's orbit. If this body, with a perihelion of approximately 200 million km, was simply bound to pass by the inner planets at a relatively close distance, then strictly speaking, probability theory predicted no intersection with the outer planets. The object had previously passed at a huge distance of over a billion km from Neptune and Saturn, and in 2027 it will again pass at a distance of over a billion km from Uranus. Against this backdrop, a close approach to Jupiter of approximately 50 million km seems like a very short distance, especially given Jupiter's orbital length of approximately 5 billion km. On video, this encounter looks absolutely mesmerizing. The two bodies (the interstellar visitor and the largest planet near the Sun), as if by agreement, are hurtling toward each other, diverging almost at the last moment.

It's difficult to say whether such an orbit has scientific interest. The object will be visible at the very limit of its sensitivity as it approaches Jupiter, although it's possible this could prompt an extension of the life of the Juno probe currently operating near Jupiter, which was previously scheduled to be decommissioned next year. What's certain, however, is a new wave of theories about the object's alien nature and hypotheses about its true intentions will emerge as it approaches the gas giant. One can also marvel at the luck and resourcefulness of the resilient Avi Loeb, whose inglorious end to his success could have occurred within a month if the "alien ship" had flown past Earth without any signs of life. Now, with a new topic at his disposal, he may well emerge completely unscathed. Indeed, proving whether or not the interstellar visitor has manipulated Jupiter, dropped its probes, or worse, will be completely impossible from such a distance.