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Q42313338
Sign in to save1I/ʻOumuamua is the first confirmed interstellar object detected passing through the Solar System. Formally designated 1I/2017 U1, it was discovered by Canadian Robert Weryk using the Pan-STARRS telescope at Haleakalā Observatory, Hawaii, on 19 October 2017, approximately 40 days after it passed its closest point to the Sun on 9 September. When it was first observed, it was about 33 million km (21 million mi; 0.22 AU) from Earth (about 85 times as far away as the Moon) and already heading away from the Sun.
1I/'Oumuamua is the first object from outside our Solar System that astronomers have confirmed passing through it, discovered in October 2017 by Canadian astronomer Robert Weryk. It matters because its detection proves that interstellar objects can travel through space and reach our cosmic neighborhood, fundamentally changing our understanding of what kinds of visitors move through the Solar System.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Key facts
- Planet.minorplanet
- yes
- Planet.name
- 1I/ʻOumuamua
- Planet.background
- FFE0C2
- Planet.image
- A2017U1 5gsmoothWHT enhanced.jpg
- Planet.image_scale
- 1.25
- Planet.caption
- ʻOumuamua on 28 October 2017
- Planet.discoverer
- Robert Weryk using
- Planet.discovery_site
- Haleakalā Obs., Hawaii
- Planet.discovered
- 19 October 2017
- Planet.mpc_name
- 1I/2017 U1
- Planet.pronounced
- ,
- Planet.named_after
- Hawaiian term for scout
- Planet.epoch
- 23 November 2017 (JD 2458080.5)
- Planet.observation_arc
- 80 days
- Planet.time_periastron
- 9 September 2017 (87.71 km/s)
- Planet.inclination
- 122.74°
- Planet.asc_node
- 24.597°
- Planet.arg_peri
- 241.811°
via Wikipedia infobox
~29 min read
Encyclopedic overview
19 sectionsContents
- Name
- Observations
- Trajectory
- Non-gravitational acceleration
- Indications of origin
- Classification
- Appearance, shape and composition
- Radio measurements
- Discussion
- Nitrogen ice theory
- Hydrogen ice theory
- Hydrogen-laden water ice theory
- Hypothetical space missions
- Technosignature hypothesis
- Other interstellar objects
- See also
- Notes
- References
- External links
1I/ʻOumuamua is the first confirmed interstellar object detected passing through the Solar System. Formally designated 1I/2017 U1, it was discovered by Canadian Robert Weryk using the Pan-STARRS telescope at Haleakalā Observatory, Hawaii, on 19 October 2017, approximately 40 days after it passed its closest point to the Sun on 9 September. When it was first observed, it was about 33 million km (21 million mi; 0.22 AU) from Earth (about 85 times as far away as the Moon) and already heading away from the Sun.
ʻOumuamua is a small object estimated to be between long, with its width and thickness both estimated between . It has a red color, like objects in the outer Solar System. Despite its close approach to the Sun, it showed no signs of having a coma, the usual nebula around comets formed when they pass near the Sun. Further, it exhibited nongravitational acceleration, potentially due to outgassing or a push from solar radiation pressure. It has a rotation rate similar to the Solar System's asteroids, but many valid models permit it to be unusually more elongated than all but a few other natural bodies observed in the solar system. This feature raised speculation about its origin. Its light curve, assuming little systematic error, presents its motion as "tumbling" rather than "spinning", and moving sufficiently fast relative to the Sun that it is likely of extrasolar origin. Extrapolated and without further deceleration, its path cannot be captured into a solar orbit, so it will eventually leave the Solar System and continue into interstellar space. Its planetary system of origin and age are unknown.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Q42313338” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.