Oumuamua is thought to be a fragment of a Pluto-like object in another solar system.
REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA – Scientists are still curious and continue to find out about the Oumuamua celestial object. Until now it is not known or confirmed what type Oumuamua this, whether alien technology or some kind of asteroid.
Now, the latest findings are published American Geophysical Union Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets reveals that Oumuamua may be a fragment of a similar object Pluto from another Solar System.
Oumuamua is derived from the Hawaiian word for “messenger who reaches from the distant past”. This object was found and then disappeared from view in December 2017.
Reporting from CNN on Thursday (18/3), At first, astronomers thought Oumuamua was a comet. This is because comets can be thrown out of their parent systems through gravitational disturbances and they are also very visible.
However, Oumuamua did not have the properties of a true comet. Oumuamua is a dry, reddish rock, elongated cigar-shaped object, as thick as a three-story building and half the length of a city beam, has no comet tail and its falling motion is inexplicable.
The debate over Oumuamua
Debate has arisen over whether it is an interstellar asteroid or a comet. “And of course, there is speculation that Oumuamua is some kind of alien probe. In many ways, Oumuamua is similar to a comet but strange enough in some ways, that mystery surrounds its nature and speculation runs rampant about what it is,” said Arizona State University astrophysicist Steven Desch.
Researchers estimate that Oumuamua’s encounter with the sun caused it to lose 95 percent of its mass. Then, there is the theory that Oumuamua is a foreign object or a piece of technology that has been circulating since it appeared.
“Until now, we had no way of knowing what another solar system have planets like Pluto but now we have seen a small part of the planets pass through Earth, “he said.
It is known that future telescopes, such as the Vera Rubin Observatory in Chile will regularly survey the entire sky as visible from the Southern Hemisphere, increasing the ability to see more interstellar objects entering the solar system. The observatory will be operational from 2022.
“It is hoped that in a decade or so, we will be able to obtain statistics on what types of objects are passing through the solar system and if the nitrogen ice packs are rare or commonplace as we have calculated. However, we should be able to learn a lot about other solar systems and whether they experience this type of ice. the same collision history as we did, “he said.
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