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A compelling explanation for the enigmatic small object ‘Oumuamua

Seemingly contradictory observations of the first known interstellar object are reconciled in a model that presents a simple and physically realistic framework for understanding the object’s many peculiarities.
  1. Marco Micheli

    1. Marco Micheli is at the ESA PDO NEO Coordination Centre, 00044 Frascati, Rome, Italy.

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The idea that an asteroid could pose a threat to Earth by colliding with it has prompted the development of telescopes dedicated to the discovery of asteroids and comets that range in size from metres to kilometres1. These telescopes often detect objects that pose no threat but are nonetheless scientifically intriguing. One such discovery was the first observation of a ‘small body’ originating outside the Solar System2. This object, known as ‘Oumuamua, shows many irregularities in appearance and motion that have previously confounded astronomers3. But now, in a paper in Nature, Bergner and Seligman4 present a model that explains most of the observed characteristics of ‘Oumuamua without resorting to any exotic or unphysical mechanisms.

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Nature 615, 591-592 (2023)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-00797-5

References

  1. Jedicke, R., Granvik, M., Micheli, M., Ryan, E., Spahr, T. & Yeomans, D. K. in Asteroids IV (eds Michel, P., DeMeo, F. E. & Bottke, W. F.) 795–813 (Univ. Arizona Press, 2015).

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  2. Meech, K. J. et al. Nature 552, 378–381 (2017).

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  3. Micheli, M. et al. Nature 559, 223–226 (2018).

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  4. Bergner, J. B. & Seligman, D. Z. Nature 615, 610–613 (2023).

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  5. Jewitt, D. & Seligman, D. Z. Preprint at https://arxiv.org/abs/2209.08182 (2022).

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Competing Interests

The author declares no competing interests.

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