How We Can Intercept Oumuaumua With Project Lyra
253In 2017, astronomers spotted Oumuamua. It was unlike anything we'd ever seen hurtling through the vast void of space. This object was moving three times faster than the average comet in the solar system. Its speed, shape, and path were strange. But with the object now over 6 billion kilometers away, the mystery remains unsolved. Some scientists think it's worth chasing it. But, is it feasible with such a vast distance to cover? What would it take to catch up with Oumuamua, and where are we on that mission? Let’s find out!
On October 19, 2017, the University of Hawaii’s Pan-STARRS 1 telescope made a discovery that would spark years of fascination and debate. While scanning the skies for near-Earth objects, it detected a strange visitor from deep space, labeled 1I/2017 U1. Later, it was nicknamed Oumuamua, meaning "a messenger from afar arriving first" in Hawaiian. It wasn't just another asteroid or comet. It was something entirely unprecedented. Oumuamua stood out immediately for its speed. It was over 314,000 km/h, much faster than typical solar system objects.
On September 9, 2017, Oumuamua reached its closest point to the Sun, zooming past at a jaw-dropping 87 kilometers per second. So far, normal for a visitor from the stars. But something bizarre happened when it started heading back into space—it didn’t slow down like it should have. Initially, astronomers thought it might be an asteroid, as it lacked the gas and dust trails that characterize comets. Instead, it suddenly accelerated, as if defying the Sun's gravity. However, no signs of outgassing were detected—no coma, no tail, and no gas clouds.
Astronomers estimate it to be somewhere between 100 and 1,000 meters long, with a shape resembling either a disc or a cigar. But what took Oumuamua from an interesting observation to a full-blown cosmic mystery was its strange behavior when it passed by the Sun. It deviated from the path predicted by gravitational forces. This means that gravity was not the only thing dictating its path. Detailed observations revealed that Oumuamua’s brightness fluctuated dramatically every seven hours, suggesting it was spinning or tumbling around its axis. These variations led researchers to conclude it had a highly elongated shape, ro
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Credits: Ron Miller, Mark A. Garlick / MarkGarlick.com ,Elon Musk/SpaceX/ Flickr
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00:00 Intro
01:01 The discovery of Oumuamua in 2017
5:30 Where Did Oumuamua Come From?
7:42 The Big question is: Where are we in the hunt for Oumuamua?
8:18 Project Lyra
13:13 What’s Next? And Is This Object Worst Our Tax Dollars?
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