Why 3I/ATLAS Can Revive Descartes' Physics

The rivalry between René Descartes and Isaac Newton was one of the biggest in science history.

Descartes’ comprehensive system came first and held sway for decades.

Yet, it was the appearance of Halley’s Comet that tipped the scales decisively toward Newton.

Fast-forward to today, however, and the discovery of interstellar comets like the recently observed 3I/ATLAS suggests that Descartes might yet have the final word in this cosmic debate.

The Dominance of Descartes’ Vortex Theory

In the mid-17th century, René Descartes proposed a comprehensive mechanical philosophy in his 1644 work Principles of Philosophy.

At its core was the idea of vortices: swirling whirlpools of ethereal matter that carried planets and comets in circular orbits around the Sun.

This system was appealing because it was complete—it explained everything from planetary motion to magnetism without invoking mysterious forces like gravity.

Descartes’ universe was a plenum, a filled space where motion was transmitted through contact, much like eddies in a fluid.

Descartes’ ideas dominated European thought for much of the century.

Even as Isaac Newton developed his laws of motion and universal gravitation in the 1680s, many scholars clung to the Cartesian framework.

Newton’s system, with its action-at-a-distance gravity, seemed occult and incomplete to critics.

Why accept an invisible force when vortices provided a tangible, mechanical explanation?

The Cartesian vortex model predicted that celestial bodies followed curved, orbiting paths, embedded in the solar system’s grand whirlpool.

The Turning Point: Halley’s Comet

The tide began to turn in the early 18th century, thanks to Edmond Halley.

Using Newton’s gravitational principles, Halley calculated that a bright comet observed in 1682 was the same one recorded in 1531 and 1607.

He predicted its return around 1758. When it reappeared on Christmas Day 1758, it was a stunning vindication of Newtonian physics.

Halley’s Comet follows an elliptical orbit, looping around the Sun every 76 years or so.

• This “intrastellar” comet, bound to our solar system, behaved exactly as Newton’s inverse-square law predicted.

The event was a public relations coup for Newtonians.

Cartesian vortices struggled to account for such precise, non-circular orbits without ad hoc adjustments.

This was because Descartes made a factual error in the speed ranges of the 2nd Element in our solar system, as was correctly pointed out by Newton.

• His speeds actually match galactic vortices, not stellar ones!

Just because of this real but tiny mistake, Descartes’ system was largely discarded by the 18th century.

Interstellar Comets: A New Frontier

People failed to see that Descartes’ comet mechanics were for interstellar ones.

This was because his main basis was the Great comet of 1472 which was not an orbital comet, whereas Halley’s comet is an orbital one.

Another non-orbiting comet which was recently discovered on July 1, 2025 is Comet 3I/ATLAS.

Detected , by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS), this comet made its closest approach to Earth on December 19, 2025, at a safe distance of about 170 million miles. Its trajectory is hyperbolic with an eccentricity of approximately 6.14, giving it a near-linear path through our system.

The motion of 3I/ATLAS goes against the solar system’s revolution.

• This validates Descartes which vortex model which says that comet motion comes from the vortex rotation of the solar system where it is or where it came from.
• The solar system next to the sun rotates in the opposite direction of the sun – this matches its:
  • orbital inclination of 175 degrees
  • opposing movement

Newton Won the Battle, but Descartes’ Will Win the War

In the end, Newton won the battle with Halley’s Comet, cementing gravity as the cornerstone of physics.

But as we discover more interstellar comets like 3I/ATLAS, Descartes’ vortices offer a more solid system to explain phenomena beyond our solar system.