Orpington Astronomical Society

Astronomy => In the Media... => Topic started by: ApophisAstros on Nov 20, 2017, 22:49:25

Title: INTERSTELLAR ASTEROID "LIKE NOTHING SEEN BEFORE"
Post by: ApophisAstros on Nov 20, 2017, 22:49:25
INTERSTELLAR ASTEROID "LIKE NOTHING SEEN BEFORE"
On Oct. 2017, the Pan-STARRS 1 telescope in Hawai'i picked up a faint point of light moving across the sky. At first it appeared to be an ordinary asteroid--but astronomers quickly realized it was something entirely different. The hurtling object, since named "'Oumuamua," came from interstellar space. At the time of its discovery, 'Oumuamua had just swung around the sun. Telescopes around the world swiveled to observe it before it could leave the Solar System. Findings from those rapid observations were published in today's issue of Nature, and they reveal a very strange object indeed:
https://youtu.be/O6PpbO7vIjU (https://youtu.be/O6PpbO7vIjU)
Roger
Title: First-known interstellar Solar System visitor 'Oumuamua a comet in disguise
Post by: Rick on Mar 23, 2023, 17:22:27
First-known interstellar Solar System visitor 'Oumuamua a comet in disguise – research

The cigar-shaped 'Oumuamua, the first interstellar object in recorded human history to whizz through the Solar System, is a comet after all, a pair of astronomers declared in research published in Nature on Wednesday.

In 2017, 'Oumuamua captured the imagination of scientists and space fans with its peculiar characteristics. It had a nobbly, rocky surface, and was elongated and flat unlike anything they had seen before. The object looked like it might be an asteroid, but behaved more like a comet.

As it travelled through the Solar System, astronomers were puzzled over how it was accelerating using non-gravitational forces. Some people even suggested the first-known foreign visitor, whose name is a Hawaiian word meaning "a messenger from afar" might be an alien spaceship. But new evidence suggests 'Oumuamua was just an icy comet after all.

More: https://www.theregister.com/2023/03/23/firstknown_interstellar_solar_system_visitor