Mystery behind unidentified object thought to be a spacecraft that flew by Earth has been solved
Ever since October 2017, there has been a whole lot of interest in and controversy surrounding what was dubbed Oumuamua – or the first interstellar object to ever be discovered in our solar system.
And since there was no definitive answer as to what it could be at the time, this allowed many to speculate that it could in fact be some sort of alien artefact, instead of a comet or some other much more natural entity.
However, a pair of scientists have now presented what they deem to be a robust explanation for why Oumuamua had behaved so bizarrely when it passed by Planet Earth.
According to the study, which was published on Wednesday (22 March) in Nature, this new research suggests that because of how many years this object had been in interstellar space, it was left with an abundance of hydrogen on a molecular level that then turned into gas when sunlight entered the equation.
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Mystery behind unidentified object thought to be a spacecraft that flew by Earth has been solved
Ellis Cochrane
Published 18:09, 23 March 2023 GMT | Last updated 18:09, 23 March 2023 GMT
Featured Image Credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser/Gemini Observatory/AURA/NSF
It appears that what was once an unidentified flying object, that some claimed could be a spaceship, has finally been identified.
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Ever since October 2017, there has been a whole lot of interest in and controversy surrounding what was dubbed Oumuamua – or the first interstellar object to ever be discovered in our solar system.
And since there was no definitive answer as to what it could be at the time, this allowed many to speculate that it could in fact be some sort of alien artefact, instead of a comet or some other much more natural entity.
However, a pair of scientists have now presented what they deem to be a robust explanation for why Oumuamua had behaved so bizarrely when it passed by Planet Earth.
Oumuamua has been a mystery for years now. Credit: Matteo Omied/Alamy Stock Photo
According to the study, which was published on Wednesday (22 March) in Nature, this new research suggests that because of how many years this object had been in interstellar space, it was left with an abundance of hydrogen on a molecular level that then turned into gas when sunlight entered the equation.
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Jennifer Bergner, an assistant professor of chemistry at the University of Berkeley who led the study, said: “Given the information that we have, I think that this is our best hope of explaining Oumuamua without having to resort to more sensational ideas, or, as we might say in the science community, ‘fine-tuned’ ideas.
“We’re excited about this idea because it seems very generic, and a natural explanation for a process that should be happening anyways,” she continued.
https://www.unilad.com/news/mystery-of-oumuamua-unidentified-object-solved-864760-20230323