Since scientists named the first interstellar object to enter the solar system ‘Oumuamua, which roughly means “scout” in Hawaiian. The Earth never ceases to question its nature and its origin.
The cigar-shaped comet was detected passing through the solar system in 2017 and is now on its way to the constellation Pegasus.
Also to read:
‘Oumuamua moved like a comet, but did not leave the vapor trails that one would normally see behind a comet. The star was also smaller than other comets, which can be several kilometers wide.
This text is a translation of an article from CTV News.
Its elongated shape and other unusual features have led to several theories: alien probe, piece of a distant planet, etc. However, scientists have now claimed they know its origin and the answer is less extraordinary than previous theories. According to a study published in the scientific journal Nature Wednesday, ‘Oumuamua is most likely an interstellar comet.
Before the arrival of the small celestial body, scientists had only observed comets that originated from the solar system and had similar characteristics. NASA describes these comets as “frozen remnants of solar system formation composed of dust, rock, and ice.”
When comets in the solar system orbit the sun, solar radiation heats them and causes jets of vaporous dust and gas that are visible from Earth, a comet tail
The authors of this latest study, Jennifer Bergner and Darryl Seligman, found that ‘Oumuamua likely has a cometary tail, but it is simply invisible. Since ‘Oumuamua is much smaller than commonly observed comets, Jennifer Bergner and Darryl Seligman wrote that it might have generated a jet of hydrogen gas that was just too small and thin to be detected by telescopes.
The way it passed through the solar system also supports this idea.
According to NASA, comet jets are strong enough to give comets a boost of speed at certain points in their orbit, independent of the sun’s gravitational pull. ‘Oumuamua accelerated as it passed through Earth’s inner solar system in a comet-like fashion, but the lack of a visible tail suggested it was not a comet, leaving scientists baffled as to the source of its acceleration.
If the comet’s tail was too small to be seen, but strong enough to give it a boost, the scientists said that would explain its characteristics.
